Fort Haste: Winter
by Zencolour
Summary: Humanity has been swept clean by some unknown virus and the few survivors count themselves the unlucky ones. In a new world of mutant Pokémon, crippling winters, and a survivalist camp to run - Orion has plenty on his mind. But what if the true enemy are the deeds of his past? Rated T for violence and language. Re-write.
1. Introduction

FH: WINTER

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INTRODUCITON

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Fort Haste: WINTER is a recount of a tale set within the Pokémon world - one in which everything has gone wrong. Here we meet the final survivors as they struggle to endure through hell and beyond. An unknown virus has wiped-out most of humanity, only leaving behind children which seem to be less affected by the disease. In an attempt to preserve what remains of humanity, Fort Haste was bodged in the months following the pandemic. Even now, the settlement remains at the very heart of the ongoing apocalypse. For everything that has happened and all the trials humanity has faced - Fort Haste stands as a vision of hope.

The V-DPP 'virus' which caused the global pandemic is of both unknown origin and character. However, it has been theorized that the disease was originally in the form of an airborne virus. The first outbreak annihilated a huge proportion of the population at such high rates that any attempt at containment (or even a cure) were in vain. This initial strain mutated but eventually died very rapidly - leaving a weak version of the the virus behind only capable of infecting others in limited blood-to-blood contact. Although the true origin of the disease is unknown, early researchers claimed that it was an initial attempt at genetically triggering evolution in certain pokemon. For still unidentified reasons, the 'virus' caused a greater death toll with increasing age. In reality this meant that the age distribution of survivors formed rarey reached past seventeen. The rather aptly named 'Fort Haste' remains the largest population centre in the known world.

Fort Haste is in fact a small farmstead that was rapidly turned into a settlement following the V-DPP pandemic. This was spearheaded by the previous leader Orion, a transformed victim of the virus. Construction of a base in a more rural setting was greatly helped by local pokemon known as 'Wildlings'. The site was rapidly upcycled within a few weeks, and is perhaps where the name 'Fort Haste' is derived from. 'Lower Sted' was the original name of the farm, with a boundary encompassing just over one hundred and thirty two acres. Nearly all of the old buildings were converted into accommodation and the parameter refitted with a palisade and trench system. Reconstructions of the original site reveal it's design matched ancient roman forts.

Survival was thanks to immediate implementation of sustainability and endurance strategies - and a huge amount of luck. The displacement of the small population away from urban areas provided recluse from theoretical mutant-pokemon (Feral) hotspots. Development of a stronghold, defences, and a strict militaristic regime spearheaded by a small leadership circle provided an efficient settlement. Ultimately, the pairing of the human population with an equally devastated local Pokemon population provided safety in numbers. The sharing of resources, labour, and knowledge allowed for a rapid recovery following the pandemic.

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THE AZURE TAPE - MIXTAPE (C60)

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 **SIDE A** [28:07]

[4:11] Santana - She's Not There (1977)

[4:16] Andrew Gold - Lonely Boy (1976)

[3:08] Buggles - Video Killed the Radio Star (1980)

[3:26] The Rolling Stones - Street Fighting Man (1968)

[4:29] Christopher Cross - Ride Like The Wind (1979)

[4:46] Boston - More Than A Feeling (1976)

[4:01] Jimi Hendrix - All Along The Watchtower (1968)

 **SIDE B** [30:43]

[4.16] Elton John - Don't Go Breaking My Heart (1976)

[4.44] Iggy Pop - The Passenger (1977)

[2.52] The Animals - Please Don´t Let Me Be Misunderstood (1965)

[3.17] Kansas - Dust in the Wind (1977)

[4.53] Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here (1975)

[2.37] Buffalo Springfield - For What It's Worth (1967)

[4.55] Meat Loaf - Bat Out Of Hell (Radio Edit) (1977)

[3.09] Frank Sinatra - That's life (1966)

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 _Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any events, location, and/or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. The views expressed by the characters and/or the narratives do not necessarily reflect the author's views. This fiction is rated T and may be unsuitable for young audiences. 'Fort Haste' is a fictional concept that is owned and regulated by ZenColour._

Fort Haste is a work of fiction written as a collaboration between ZenColour and Just-A-Reader0Love


	2. Chapter 1

FH: WINTER

* * *

"Fort Haste: WINTER" is a recount of a tale set within the Pokémon world - one in which everything has gone wrong. Here we meet the final survivors as they struggle to endure through hell and beyond. An unknown virus has wiped-out most of humanity, leaving behind children which seem to be less affected by the disease. In an attempt to preserve what remains of humanity, Fort Haste was bodged in the months following the pandemic. Even now, the settlement remains at the very heart of the ongoing apocalypse. For everything that has happened and all the trials humanity has faced - Fort Haste stands as a vision of hope.

Please note, this and following chapters will contain both narrative and speech in various dialects and languages. Anything said in Pokémon will be underlined as shown. Normal speech will remain unaffected, although _italics_ and **bold** may be used for effect following standard rules. For whistle calls ***…something like this…*** will be used, and any random flashbacks etc. are marked with {''}.

Fort Haste is a work of fiction written as a collaboration between ZenColour and Just-A-Reader0Love

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AUTHOR NOTES

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Zen: _Looking back through FH, R'Love and I decided it was about time that this story got the attention it deserved. There was a lot of improvements that could have been made, as well as editing in proper use of grammar and the English language in general. So FH: Winter has been rewritten, improved, cleaned, and generally polished so as to be the story I dreamt up over two years ago. For old readers you can expect better content, a more coherent story, and a completely new ending! If this is your first time then buckle down and prepare yourself for post-apocalyptic mayhem (with a bit of ZenColour quirkiness)!_

R'Love: _I must say, things will be a lot more polished this time around. The events in the plot will be spruced up and made clearer. They may also be points of view that were not seen in the first version of the story. There is one crucial thought to have when writing a story: have fun and enjoy your work. That brings out the best in your writing._

* * *

 **HAYS SNH Version 3 (0058 PA)**

Forward written by H. Bennett and A. Good [EXTRACT]

9000406224992 - Sinnoh Outreach Programme for Historical Preservation

 _These self-proclaimed 'Hasties' are largely descendants of the only surviving group to have pulled through the global pandemic. I myself come from the much more densely populated region of Sinnoh, although in respect to pre-DPP numbers our recovering society is still minuscule. It's hard to imagine how crowded the world once was, although research suggests that nearly a hundred years later we're still experiencing the repercussions of the virus. Many pokemon remain mutated, though these hardly compared to the original 'Ferals' which once stalked the Earth. Given what happened, it's amazing humanity survived at all._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 1**

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An Excerpt from _Hays's Journals V.I_

 _It was the coldest winter in living memory. Yet somehow it was one of the warmest for friendships. Survival brought us together by nature's brutal demand that safety is derived from both numbers and cooperation. That year was the year that marked the beginning of Fort Haste. The year that made it what it is today - A message of unity._

* * *

 **ORION's POV**

* * *

 _{'Vermin…'}_

I growled fiercely at the face that taunted me. But the chain held, no matter how hard I tugged at the linkages. Muscles in my neck contorted and burned as I fought to escape my captivity. Blood vessels ruptured as I failed again and again to attain freedom. With my arms tied tightly behind my back, not to mention looped around an old tree trunk, there was nothing I could do. Inside the bloodied skin and aching sinew, my battered body was a mess of foaming energy that was apparently useless.

Dark visions of escape played on a constant recording in front of my eyes. But the tape reel was scratched and the image jumped in increasingly more violent repetitions as I tried again and again to pull myself free.

'Freak of nature! To think you came here of all fooking places. Bargaining like you belong with us - as if you could lead us! Piece of Feral shite!'

I growled at the approaching figure. The teenager hauled himself through the mud with a venomous expression wrapped tightly across a darkened face. His clothes were a few weeks overdue of a decent wash, and appeared to hang off his skinny frame. It was a common sight to see post-apocalypse now food was so scarce. Stepping forward to taunt his captive, I could only pull back from the young man as he hooked grimy hands over his belt.

The boy stood still to inspect me. That didn't last long before he spoke with a sneer,

'You can't even speak! Fooking Pitiful!'

Almost to prove his point, I rolled my tongue dutifully around my parched mouth and drew out all the moisture I could. With a heave I spat tightly on the floor, although it pained my bruised ribs to do so. It took an embarrassing amount of time to get my voice working.

'Seriously Derrick. I thought we could talk this out or something.'

'Yeah right.' The kid squinted at me whilst scratching at his mop of curly hair, 'I told you before. We don't want anything to do with you or any of those affected by the virus. The world's has enough fookin mutant freaks without one trying to actually lead us! Fookin Umbreon.'

'I was trying to help.' I spluttered, 'And what do I get for it? A damn shovel to the back of the head!'

My reply was meant to come out a little more forceful than it did. Instead it came out as a squeak and then even into a small whine. Pulling my ears back was all I could do in an attempt to hide just showed how much I looked like a weird Umbreon cross-breed. This only made the younger boy snicker.

'Yep. And I don't want any of it. None of us do. If humans are meant to survive then we'll do it alone. We don't need damned mutant vermin like you telling us what to do.'

The surprise kick to my groin took my legs out from under me. With a yelp my tail stood on end as I fell forward. The freezing chain bunched around my wrists held my slumped as I screwed my eyes tightly shut against the pain. Sounds came to my throat as I tried to fight away the rising animalistic instincts in my gut. Everything inside told me to fight back. To gain revenge.

 _{'Vermin…'}_

I think it must have been the pain that woke me from the nightmare. I became all too aware of the dream I was having as the aches and pains of reality began to seep into my consciousness. With a moan I rolled over only to have sweltering pain jerk up my spine.

Blinking my eyes open, I was nearly blinded by cool sunlight illuminating my face.

'How are you feeling?'

My ears twitched at the noise but I just groaned, pawing at my eyes in an attempt to adjust the to daylight.

'Orion?'

'Ughhhh...' was all I managed to get out as I blinked the world into a vague clarity. The next thing I knew and I could feel Fenn stroking at the fluff of hair between my ears. She knew I hated that and I sent a stony death-glare at the fuzzy outline of the teenager. After a couple more petty strokes at my earlobes, she pulled back and crossed her arms.

Pulling in a deep breath, I tried to make sense of seeing the world sideways as I lay in the medical bay.

'So? How are you feeling?' Fenn pushed, pouring a glass of water. She set it down on the bedside table. There was little else to furnish the small room, although paint had been added to cover up the breezeblock walls. The medical facilities had been built in the Far-Shed which once held Grumpigs, meaning that the small ward looked more like a farm outhouse than a hospital. Following on from everything that had happened at Berry Hill, I was just glad to be home.

Jane was sat in a old kitchen chair currently leant against the far wall. With a large notebook lying across her knees, she was studying the worn pages with what appeared to be a new pair of glasses. The young adult, around sixteen, had dark black hair which was loosely slung into a small bun. A little short for her age and with a shy nature at the best of times, she was engrossed in her reading as bright brown eyes flickered back and forth behind her round spectacles.

'Uh. Fine?' I wasn't so sure myself, having just re-lived everything again in my fitful sleep, 'My back hurts.' I complained.

'Well. That's to be expected. It took two of us to bandage you up.'

Fenn was pacing the room, dragging her leather boots across the polished concrete. Light from the dusty single-glazed windows illuminated her fair hair, blue eyes, and grim expression. Obviously contemplating the situation to hand, and how my attempts at reconciliation with the break-off group of survivors had failed, her gaze was elsewhere. Adjusting the the thick woolen jumper she liked to wear from about her neck, she heaved a large sigh before rubbing at her temples.

It was Jane that spoke however, asking quietly; 'Can you remember much?'

I tried to shake my head to say no - only that each twitch of my neck brought a spark of pain and a thumping headache. That and I knew that neither of them would believe me anyways. The small-scale carnage I had created just to escape had confirmed that fact. At least they'd come off worse at the end of it all. A small consolation at best.

However, the memories felt more like a dream from a past life.

'I can recall fragments.' I murmured softly, 'I know the Wildling's turned up to help. I guess it didn't end too well did it?'

'You could say that...' Fenn had stopped pacing, her eyes like daggers as she turned to look at me. 'So much for your great idea to unify us all eh? Not only did they refuse your terms but they…'

She stopped, exasperated.

'I told you that it wasn't going to work! Those guys up at Berry Hill hate you Orion.'

Fenn liked to get to the point, but often a little too quickly. Yet even I had to admit she was right. When the survivors from the nearby town had come to this region, a large handful of children had decided to break away and form their own group. That would have been fine - except for the fact that they stole a large volume of food, ammunitions, and medical items before they left. Their leader, a kid named Derrick, had a personal hatred for me. I felt it went beyond the fact I had Umbreon features.

Jane was still studying whatever book she had on her lap. From the sheer size of the hardback I could only guess it was some type of medical encyclopedia.

I rolled over slightly. It was a struggle to get comfortable again, though at this point I didn't know whether or not it was indeed possible. My fur itched and I didn't want to be cooped up in here any longer then I had to. Attempting to sit up, however, was a bad decision. Tendrils of cold pain focusing on my ribs brought out a small yelp.

Grinning sheepishly at the pain, I avoided Fenn's cold glare as I settled back under the cover. Perhaps that wasn't the best idea.

'You need to take it steady! That body of yours has been through more than it was designed for. You may be half Umbreon but that doesn't mean you can skimp out on rest.'

'Yeah about that…'

Jane got up suddenly, and Fenn turned to look at the shorter teenager with lightning speed. For a moment Jane visibly blanched, before brushing a stray hair from her face and getting to business.

'I...uh...managed to have a root around and found something. It's medicine which will help speed up the healing process. Better than nothing'

'I don't…' Fenn cut me off my complaining with a raised eyebrow and I dropped into silence again.

Watching them both study the small bottle, I finally piped up in a small voice,

'Is it an ointment or...you know...I don't really want to be wasting anything that could…'

'It's a spray Orion.' Fenn's voice was steely, 'Just take it. Jane's pretty sure it should work. We've got enough stocks unless you start making this a weekly event.'

The spectacled girl nodded, already pulling the tab out of the potion bottle and shaking up the small container. With the two girls stood over me, there wasn't much I could do but comply. With a groan I accepted my fate, rolling over whilst Jane undid the yellowed bandage which was already stained from blood.

Cold air caused my skin to goosepimple under the sprinkling of black fur. Gritting my teeth, I wasn't prepared for the sudden wash of the spray down my shoulders and spin. The tingle of fluid against the open wounds stung and I yelped in shock at the unpleasant situation.

'Ouch! Fenn!'

My hackles rose and I fought off the natural response to growl at my would-be healers.

'Orion. If this stuff works then it's better than you suffering. End of story.'

'Fine.' I replied, still not enjoying the sensation of the spray working it's way down to just above my tail.

After applying the pokemon medicine, re-bandaging my middle, and even finding a painkiller (which I was certain also came from a Pokecenter bottle) Jane didn't have much else to do. Following training which she'd largely taught herself over the past few weeks; Fort Haste's very own doctor commanded me to relax and rest. Ensuring I had enough water and a chamber pot, she dog-eared her medical tome and left Fenn and I to our own company.

The door closed rather loosely. It appeared that the old kitchen doorframe didn't fit well into the crudely bricked partition. There were large gaps present at the top and bottom of the doorframe.

'Everything's ok in Fort Haste then?'

My attempt to break the silence was only met with a small sigh as Fenn pulled a chair out to sit closer to the bed. Now that Jane had gone, she seemed to relax visibly. Her shoulders slumped into a more natural position. Wiping her nose with the back of a sleeve, the bags under her eyes became startlingly obvious. It was clear that Fenn hadn't slept well the past few days.

Thankfully, she let a small smirk play across her pale face.

'I think we can manage without you for a couple of days Orion. But yes. Everything is fine here at Fort Haste.'

She paused before adding a little more harshly,

'And I'm not letting you out of this room until you get the rest you need! Those guys beat you up pretty bad and it won't do the kids any good to see you with a black-eye.

Whatever potion that had used on my wounds seemed to be doing the job. Already I could feel a numb sensation replacing the pain. Letting my lungs rise and fall with a slow rhythm, I tuned my ears into the noises around me. Through the brickwork, Fort Haste could be heard hard at work within the surrounding sheds. Voices carried easily through the old farm and I let myself sink into the comforting background static of kids preparing dinner, teaching basic forestry skills, sentry changeovers, and someone fixing the shower block.

'How much can you _really_ remember?' Fenn broke the silence

Bringing my focus back to the small ward, I found Fenn's soft blue eyes watching me carefully. She must have been as tightly strung as a harpsichord whilst Jane was still in the room.

My mouth was dry.

'Too much…'

'They beat you didn't they? They tied you up like you were some kind of animal!'

'Even I have to admit it's not a hard mistake to make.' I spoke in a warm tone in the hopes it would calm the teenager. 'Not to mention that you literally just gave me Pokémon medicine!'

I prodded the accusation lightly, running the mock accusation by her.

Fenn wasn't in the mood.

'Seriously Orion. This isn't good. If anything, it might have made it worse between us and the guys at Berry Hill. We know they've got more than they need and now…'

She trailed off.

'I guess trade and an alliance is no longer on the cards.' I said in agreement.

Fort Haste had been organised as safe haven for the refugees of the last remaining quarantine zone. Moving out of the city had been a monumental task in itself, and some of the kids decided they didn't want a mutant's leadership. The result was a short scuffle and a small aggressive group now living only a few kilometers away on top of the best strategic site within a hundred miles. In an apocalypse where every life mattered, a fractured society was no longer non-trivial.

'You bet it's not!'

Fenn's cold anger raged behind her eyes and I groaned. Trying to untangle my short Umbreon tail from around my legs, I relaxed into a soft pillow and stared at the ceiling. A few cobwebs clung to the painted ply-board.

'Look Fenn, it's not that bad. These things happen and…'

'WHAT did they do to you?'

Fenn wasn't backing down, crossing her arms fiercely. Flecks of mud that she had been scraping off her jeans were stuck in her fingernails.

'Tell me Orion.'

If humans could learn the skills that Pokemon can, I'd have called that glare "Mean Look" for there was no running away from this battle. When in moods like this Fenn got what she wanted, when she wanted it.

I grumbled, avoiding her steely eyes.

'So you know the first part and the last part? You should be able to fill in everything in between. I don't want to talk about it alright? Surely you can respect that? I'm not going through all the pain again just to feed your lust for revenge. I tried and it failed. They don't want to join us. They don't want to share resources. They want to be left alone.

Fenn's face dropped slightly, before she set her jaw briskly.

'It's...it's not like that. I don't want revenge.'

I raised an eyebrow before a ache pulled a tendon in my shoulder blade. Grimacing, I relaxed back under the warm blankets. The throbbing headache was starting to make me feel sick to the point that I could taste acid in my throat.

Fenn noticed that it took some time to regain my composure.

'I'm guessing my back is pretty messed up?'

She nodded, 'Just a little.'

Tears had started to form around the rims of her eyes. For a few moments I cursed silently at how hard it was to read the young adult. One moment she was a fiery as a Moltres and the next as quiet as a Uxie. This unpredictability made it hard to know what to say even at the best of times.

'It's ok Fenn. Everything it where it needs to be for winter.

With a sigh I tried to bring her back together.

'All we need to do now is to grin and shovel shite until spring comes again. The kids are happy, the defenses are pretty much finished. What more could we hope for?'

That comment didn't do the trick

'It's what they did to you.'

I itched at an ear, even though lifting my arms caused me to grit my teeth. After a moment I folded them behind my head and hoped to calm the drumbeat pounding between my ears.

'People are like that.'

Fenn shook her head but said nothing.

We must have sat in silence for a long while. Just being in the company of the teenager was soothing and I found myself drifting off into a dreamless sleep. At first I fought the tried embrace, but it was without success. Falling asleep, it wasn't until morning that I realized I had slept at all. The curtains were drawn and Fenn was gone. An empty chair to mark her place.

Rolling over with a whine, I was surprised to find only a numb reminder of the pain in my shoulders.

Getting out of bed against the imagined protests of my would-be carers, I steadied myself with the help of the bed frame. The ground was cold under my feet. Letting blood return to my toes, I shook out my tail and found my jacket bundled up neatly in the corner. Donning my clothes to fight off the chill, I straightened my jacket and went on a hunt to find my boots.

The medical wing was pretty drab. The shear simplicity of it made me chuckle. Sure, there is modernism and there is minimalism - but then there is 'Fort Haste' where everything has a value. Although we'd tried our best to thoroughly scavenge the ruins of civilization, there was a natural limit to forays. Given the dangers of the new world, Ferals included, we only had neither the time to dig out anything beyond what was absolutely necessary. The medical wing had three rooms, five beds, and a storage area at the back which only Jane could access. In fact, it was one of the few places in Fort Haste I was specifically not allowed to go. I didn't know it that was because of a lack of trust, or the fact we'd only ever found a single key for the door.

Finding my old leather boots stood next to the exit was a relief. Lacing up slowly, I had to fight both morning grogginess and a looming headache to finish a messy knot. It was too early to be doing stuff like this, but in truth I had no idea what time of day it was. The sun hadn't yet risen. With winter approaching that could mean anything.

To be honest, I wasn't really thinking as I greeted the icy morning. It was times like this that it felt as if I was detached from my body. In some respect it was if I was floating through time as well. Mulling over my thoughts with my hands stuck in my pockets, I kicked the medical wing door close behind me. Outside and the sparkle of frost brought the farm to life in a thousand shimmering tones. The old farmstead stood sentry.

It was cold outside - cold in the sense that your breath stopped at your nose to form a misty haze of vapour. Sound barely carried through the morning gloom, my ears twitching to seek out each and every tiny vibration. One slender furred lobe was still stiff from where I lay on it overnight.

Trending softly across the yard, I found my way out in front of the accommodation block and across the silo barn. Previously it had been used to store cattle feed. Here the yard opened up to a large clear area before the old farmhouse, as well as a short tarmac drive which was now blocked by an imposing twelve foot palisade. Mist clung to the ground in a freezing fog that turned distances into whitewashed holograms. Even the farmhouse was greyed-out by the misty shroad - although a trail of smoke graced the pale blue sky. My feet led me up and onto the embankment.

Visibility was poor, that was more than obvious. Standing up on the embankment to stare into the void beyond, the pale yellow markers disappeared into the haze at around 20 meters distance. We'd buried posts spaced at every five and used their relative position to map out visibility. Like almost everything in Fort Haste, it was a simple but effective fix. Modern problems require modern solutions.

Standing on the embankment, I watched the sentries work their way back and forth across the elongate mound. Material had been dug out to form a protective ditch and much of the dirt had yet to settle. Calling it a trench would be too generous. I could have jumped over with ease. Then again, I did have an unfair advantage.

Stumbling across the next sentry, I had to jolt myself back to reality.

Wiping the chill from my cheeks, I fluffed up the cravat around my neck and brushed my coat off. As 'Leader' of Fort Haste I needed to look the part - even if I often failed. I guess everyone finally accepted a mutant was the best that they had at the moment. Most likely because nobody wanted the responsibility of the job themselves. Well, apart from the guys up on Berry Hill. They had a completely different agenda however. Not to mention that they were a bit murderous, to say the least.

The sentry on duty was a younger boy perhaps a year or two over ten. He walked stiffly in the cold with his hands buried into his pockets and only his tired eyes peeking out over the top of a thick woolen scarf. The poor guy was shivering like crazy too, hopefully taking the last few repetitions before the end of his shift. The teenager was so focused on watching the area beyond the palisade that he nearly tripped over my boots before noticing there was a morph stood in front of him.

Regaining his composure with remarkable speed, he lifted his hand in a weak salute.

'Sir!'

I smiled at the sentry warmly, hoping to soften the hard Umbreon features that were incorporated into my expression. The sun wasn't even up yet, but the faint grey tinge of a wolf's dawn echoed across the horizon.

'Thanks for the light, sir!' The sentry grinned cheekily, pulling his scarf down to sit under his chin.

It was only then that I noticed I had been mooching around without a flashlight again. During curfew hours, it was Hastie law to always carry a LED AA battery torch. Confused over whether or not the sentry was being ironic or now, it suddenly hit me. He'd been referring to my Umbreon features after all. I'd gotten away with lighting up my path with glowing golden rings, but it was something that freaked out the kids. Unlike nearly everyone in camp, my heightened senses allowed me to see with pretty much perfect night vision - to the point that I forgot how normal people struggled. Some perks were a burden as much as a benefit. Both my ears and tail were humming faintly as they spilled out a soft yellow glow. I could only hope that the morning dusk hid my reddening face as I tried to mentally stop the natural light show.

The Sentry was rocking back on forth on their heels and I wasn't sure if he wanted me to move out the way, or simply make small talk. Adolescents and teenagers often felt uncomfortable even at the bests of time. I racked my brain for something to say.

'Uh...at ease Kyle.' I paused, hoping that I hadn't muddled up his name 'When's your shift up?

The boy stamped his feet in the semi-frozen mud around the A"-marker buried into the ground.

'In about six minutes.' Kyle double-checked his watch with the illumination of his torch, 'well it's nearly seven, I think.'

I nodded, walking up a little closer to the edge of the embankment. Staring beyond into the darkened abyss of the apocalyptic wasteland, instead I was met with the increasingly bright blue skies and the shadowy forest in the distance. In fact, the farmland around Fort Haste looked almost exactly the same as it had done about a year ago. Minus the people of course. They were sort of dead from the virus by now.

Kyle was wrapped up warmly, a michelin-style coat hugging his frame snugly. Another ten minutes and he'd be in the warm anyway. Time was an important thing for sentries. Too long between changeovers and any attacking force could easily wipe out a primary line of defense, storming a camp that was none the wiser. It wasn't that we were expecting anything like that - but better safe than sorry. Shorter shifts kept the kids more alert and stopped them slipping over on the icy ground as much. We had more than enough accidents from twisted ankles and sprained knees at the moment.

Two markers A" and B" marked out the section that the person on duty would cover. There were eleven sections in total around the camp. If anything happened, whistle calls could be used to indicate what section and which marker the problem was nearest to. It also meant that eleven people were on sentry duty on the embankment at any one time. Each would have a fifteen-minute slot. Rotations of the sentry on patrol would be staggered down the line so that only one person was being switched at a time. Admittedly, it was a faff and one hell of a drill to teach. It turned Fort Haste into the fortress it was never really meant to be.

I mean it works, don't get me wrong, but it looks weird on a farmstead.

'Anything to report?' I asked softly, letting my eyes stare across what was quickly becoming a beautiful morning.

'The weather maybe..?' Kyle piped up I chuckled at the comment. 'There's been no Ferals' he added quietly.

I nodded. We hadn't had any attacks in the past week but there was no obvious pattern to the maddened things. Ferals had their own agenda (i.e. consume/murder everything) and often attempted to break through the defenses because they were too stupid to turn around. We left their bodies to decay in the surrounding fields - you'd have to be insane to even get near the diseased beasts. The virus affected Pokemon in the same was as it did the humans - but those that survived were mutated into disgusting beasts with an innate stupidity that made them dangerous.

Don't get me started trying to explain what happens if a human gets infected. It's not that I don't truly understand myself - more that the chance of survival seems so alarmingly small that it's not worth considering. Those that do pull through often suffer from the same deformations as the Ferals, cursing them with Pokemon features in a way that is painful and irreversible. It sure as hell isn't fast either.

'Good.' I replied curtly, trying to push the dark thoughts out of my mind. 'Pokemon are friends, Ferals are foes.' I intoned, although a little mockingly in retrospect. It made the kid laugh.

'Don't forget that.' I added for good measure.

'No sir.' Kyle continued to snigger.

Deciding that I better return to camp before Fenn found my hospital ward empty, I blew out a puff of air and bid the sentry goodbye. The again, she knew I'd arranged to have a meeting this morning with Roan.

'Well. I'll be seeing you at breakfast then Kyle. Enjoy the rest of your night and keep a sharp eye out for the next five minutes! Remember, You never know what could happen out there!'

Having turned the conversation to a more serious tone, Kyle straightened and nodded stiffly. I gave him a slight pat on the back, something that made my shoulder cry out in pain, before turning on my heels. Leaving the adolescent to stare out into the murky gloom, I slid down the embankment onto the concrete below.

The bandages rubbed up my back and I clenched my jaw in an attempt to fight through the pain. Whatever ointment Jane had found had since dried overnight, leaving the padding tight and itchy. Knowing my luck and the painkillers were wearing off as well.

Checking the horizon for a rough estimate of the time, I fished around in a jacket pocket to find my watch. The Lee-slopes were eery in the mist - pockmarked by sharpened stakes, razor wire, and other nasty defenses which faded in and out of the ground fog. The embankment was positioned so that it encircled the majority of the north-east, south, and west of the farmstead itself. A ditch had been dug out and the soil piled up to form a nice barrier which we'd packed out with sandbags for support. Outside the ditch, a near 40 m halo was peppered with anything we could find to deter a Feral. Impenetrable was a word that I did not use lightly, though I was tempted to apply it in this case. There were a _lot_ of surprises packed in the Lee slopes.

Making my way towards the main gate, I followed the rim of the parameter slowly. Twitching on their own accord, my ears picked out of the sounds of the morning as I waited. I tried to sooth the butterflies that kept reappearing in my stomach.

Berry Hill had only occurred the day before. In truth, the meeting should have gone a lot worse than it did. Thankfully the small wooded hilltop was actually a part of the territory of the local Pokemon herd. The so-called 'Wildlings' represented a poor English translation but it still described the native Pokemon pretty well. Led by a group of Sawsbuck, the wild creatures had teamed together for generations in an attempt to survive the harsh realities of nature. That was before the virus swept through the region. Unlike the humans, they'd been prepared for every eventuality.

I'd known the local Wildlings for some time now. If it wasn't for them, I doubt everything would have turned out as it did. The Wildlings had helped with the construction of Fort haste, not to mention saving my skin only a day earlier up on Berry Hill. Sawsbucks are surprisingly agile creatures. The Pokemon got the whole 'safety in numbers' thing and were all too happy to work with humans to survive the brutal new world. So far, Fort Haste had got the better side of the bargain.

It was this relationship between Wildlings and Hasties that was becoming increasingly important. It got to the point where we were agreed to start having regular meetings.

Today was the first one.

To be honest, I was a little surprised that the Sawsbuck made it through to the main gate as easily as he did. To those that hadn't walked it before, the path would be like finding a needle in a haystack. Nothing clearly marked the route through the Lee slopes except for a slight decrease in density of things that were likely to kill you. The barred door looking menacing in the pre-dawn gloom. As a front gate, it wasn't overly remarkable but hell was it imposing coming from the outside. Thick tree trunks had been roughly hewn into boards and then screwed together to interlock neatly.

I spotted a very familiar Sawsbuck at the exact same moment the sentry did. A loud whistle blast tore through the crisp morning air.

 ***…Arrival…Main Gate…Respond...***

Waiting a moment, I replied to clarify the three short blasts told me I needed to jog down another twenty meters to the main gate. Whoever was on duty, Haley I think at this time, had already been forewarned of the visitor.

 ***...Affirmative...Leader...Coming…***

The two huge pine doors swung open slowly. A pulley system drew the gate apart just enough to fit the large Sawsbuck before closing with a loud groaning creak behind him. Haley was at the controls, checking the door was bolted before hopping down to stand next the large deer Pokemon. Even given the scale of the main entrance, the Sawsbuck had to duck to fit his majestic antlers through. A faint hint of dew caught at his fur.

'These whistles are most distracting' The Sawsbuck was mumbling to himself before spotting me approaching. 'Ah Hunter! I'm a little early I know, but I thought it to be in our best interests.'

His hazel eyes sparkled and I steadied my heartbeat with little effect. Even having known the unifying leader of the Wildlings for some time now, it was hard to not feel a little in awe of the creature. Standing taller than a man, the Pokemon dwarfed me. The speckled fur trimming his body was puffed up to fight the cold, with his large hooves sparkling with frost as he pulled closer. It appeared that the Pokemon was rapidly transitioning into his winter form as flecks of white fur dotted his face and neck.

I had to remind myself to advert my eyes out of respect. Hint: Don't look a Pokemon in the eyes as it's often viewed as a sign of aggression instead of attention.

'No worries Roan. I wouldn't expect anything else. In fact, it gives me a chance to thank you sooner. If one of your herd didn't come to my rescue when you did I might not be standing here now.'

He snorted at that and I turned to Haley a little awkwardly. It still felt weird talking to Pokemon like this in front of people. It was clear she was mystified by it all. Then again, she had a look in her eye that was yearning to pet me. Fenn had said I always looked cute when speaking Pokemon. Apparently Haley had a soft spot for cute things.

'Thanks Haley.' I cleared my throat, struggling to manage the transition between Pokemon and English, 'Good job. Your replacement should be here anytime and you can get in the warm then. I'm guessing Mike should be up pretty soon. He's not a late sleeper by all means.'

'You can say that again' she agreed as she obviously fought the urge to squee. The girl was tall for her age, making her look a good deal older than the fifteen years of age she was. With a bobble hat hiding her jet black hair, she puffed out a small cloud of vapour. Haley had a habit of wearing wellies a few sizes too big for her. Today she filled up the extra space with a few layers of socks and dirty blue jeans tucked in snuggly.

'Thanks Haley.' I repeated, waving her off before turning my attention to the impressive Sawsbuck. Roan waited patiently with his gaze lazily gliding over the buildings of Fort Haste as he inspected the farmstead calmly.

'I got the report on what happened Hunter.' Roan turned to me with a sad sigh, 'I would have helped sooner if I knew.'

'It's fine Roan. If it wasn't for the Wildlings then things might have been very different.'

I gave the Pokémon a friendly smile. The Sawsbuck wasn't offended easily and I planned to keep things that way. With his shoulder height matching my own it was hard to look down on the majestic beast. He seemed to hold himself with a grandeur and magnificence that was simply part of his being. Sawsbuck were naturally like that, a splendour etched into every fibre that made the proud animal.

Yet the Pokémon's antlers were in a state of change. A couple of loose clumps of red leaves hung haphazardly across the living branches. Bare keratin stood as a stark reminder that it was only going to get colder.

'You are healing well I see.'

I nodded my agreement before changing the subject to more pressing matters.

'What news is there from the Wildlings, your grace?' I queried, tugging at the cravat tickling my neck.

I admit, I don't usually speak this formally but things sound a bit different when you speak with Pokémon. I was also talking with the most powerful figure in what was easily a hundred mile radius. Roan was the chief buck of what remained of his herd, and herd animals being what they are, this included a lot of other Pokémon under his protection as well. The Wildlings were mirroring our own attempt at self-preservation - albeit more successfully. They knew the lay of the land and how to squeeze every possible resource nature could provide.

Survival was another string that I could use to tie us together - for the benefit of both parties. The frequent talks between me and Roan over these past months has been the beginning of an alliance that was desperately needed. For all we knew, Fort Haste was the last bastion of hope for humanity. But where before humans could be accused of pretty much enslaving Pokemon for their own agenda (certain criminal groups spring to mind) the Wildlings were untamable, intelligent Pokémon in their own right.

We walked unhurriedly towards the heart of Fort Haste. To all accounts this was the central yard which was nearly surrounded on all sides with various barns and outbuildings. This included the near-empty Foodhall where the few early-risers were stating the morning preparation for breakfast. Insley could be heard shouting commands to get the ovens fired up.

The Sawsbuck's hooves clattered loudly on the icy concrete of the old yard. Echos reverberated around the sheds as yellow sunlight began touching the very tops of the eaves.

'I can tell your thoughts are not here Hunter. You too are in a state of flux.'

It was a while before I replied.

'There is a lot to think about when you are helping to run a place like this.'

'Indeed.'

Wisdom spun like pools in the Pokémon's eyes. With a low voice like a quiet rumble he spoke.

'I should warn you that there has been increasing numbers of Ferals over the past moon-quarter.' Roan paused for a moment to gaze across at the Keep. I wondered what the two of us sounded like to an observer, although hardly anyone was up yet. With no real destination in mind, we wandered across the yard and towards the K'field.

'They have been banding together Hunter. And I do not think that is a good sign. At first we thought the madness was a blessing and what used to be an individual was lost. Now it appears that the maddened are as clever as we are. It is almost as if they think!'

I frowned,

'Now that is worrying.'

'Indeed it is. Some of the herd have stopped the death prayers to those that had been…' The Pokémon seemed to query the best phasing for a drawn-out moment. '…taken by the madness' he finished.

I closed my eyes for a few seconds, out of respect really. Sawsbuck (and all Pokémon for that matter) draw an immense purpose from their traditions. Shared beliefs act to bind herds together and that some pokemon were turning away from them was a very bad omen. Since the pandemic, Pokemon had believed that those infected and mutated into Ferals were effectively dead and devoid of a soul. Now that the theoretically brainless Ferals were seen to be rational...well, it could easily upset a lot of Pokemon.

'Once again Roan, I offer anything available to help.' I paused before adding, 'These are trying times.'

'You can say that again' The Sawsbuck agreed, 'I know that what you say comes with great meaning Hunter.'

The Sawsbuck turned to face me now and for a moment we simply took in each other's presence. To be honest, I was shitting myself. A staring contest with a fully grown male buck was not something I did often, especially a dominant alpha-male such as Roan. What was I really? A scrawny teenager with a tail sticking out of his butt and an ego too big for his boots.

'You're doing a good job here Hunter. I can respect you for that. Your parents would be proud.'

Those were the last words I expected to hear from the Pokémon.

'I can see your mark in everything that has happened here. I also understand that not all humans are the same . What they did up on Berry Hill was a crime that no one should commit to any being - let alone their own kind!' 

Roan gave me a soft gaze, before shaking his head and staring across the K'field and the rolling hills beyond. I didn't know what to say. A little dumbstruck at the praise received from the buck, the leader of the Wildlings chuckled as he saw my expression from the corner of his eyes.

With the sun grazing the horizon behind us, our shadows were thrown out before us to hide the sparkle of a harsh frost over the K'Field. This was only area where Fort Haste laked any defences. The small farmstead merged into the surrounding landscape and the world beyond, dotted with trees nearly bare of faded brown leaves. Floodplains wiggled back and forth along the edges of the River Ex although we'd been lucky to have no flooding yet. Behind us the sounds of Fort Haste waking added a static to the peaceful moment. A lone Chatot warbled a morning song.

It was Roan who broke the silence.

'You humans are remarkably clever.' He rumbled, turning round to gaze across the central yard. Sunlight illuminated the grey flecks to his coat and highlighted the multitude of facets to his nine-pointed antlers.

'That's the keep.' I pointed out the nearest building, 'And we didn't really want to dig a big trench through this field so we just built a wall across it instead.'

'Keep.' The sawsbuck struggled to fit his muzzle around the word, 'As in...to own?'

'Yes.' I nodded formally, 'They are traditionally used to as a safehouse for protection. It is from old human technology that I read about.'

'Remarkable. Let us hope that you never need it.'

I didn't feel the need to point out the structure was built out of flammable materials. The Keep was the tallest structure in Fort Haste and was equivalent to a three story building - albeit built out of straw bales. We'd use the short rectangular bales like a scaled-up version of building blocks, along with a wooden frame and natural lime which would protect the bales from the elements. Often using the building as a watchtower, it was now being used as extra teaching rooms for some of the younger children.

A faint drizzle had started, with misty raindrops more like clouds itself than actual precipitation. Shaking the moisture from his coat, Roan managed to dislodge a small red leaf from his antler which tumbled gently to the ground. The Sawsbuck noticed this also, and we stared at the fallen leaf for a long moment.

'Will the Wildlings be ready for the winter?' I asked quietly, kicking at the dirt with a boot.

'We will survive as we always have done. You know our ways as well as we. This settlement even! I am honoured that it contains the same organization that we Wildlings possess. You have a herd here too Hunter.'

Yet another red leaf curled up amongst his antlers, only to spiral down to the turf without a whisper. Lifting his neck, I noticed just how royal the beast looked once more. The early yellow sunlight caught at the colour hugging his antlers. Cream and brown fur circled his body and muscles seemed etched onto his woolly coat. Proud? Certainly, but something that he deserved. A Knowledge that you were enough.

'Do not be afraid of change Hunter.' Roan advised softly.

After that, our conversion didn't last much longer. Talking over the state of the world, as well as our plans for the following months, we made our way back to the main gate. Haley had changed shifts with a slightly younger chap who opened the doors to reveal the new wildness. A few whistle calls passed back and forth to announce Roan leaving, as well as to ensure there were no immediate threats to any of us.

Sharing a few last words, the Sawsbuck gave a cheery farewell before returning to the woods in a fast trot. Turning my gaze back to our home, I couldn't help but think Fort Haste looking insufficient. The place looked like something drawn out of some unguided, dysfunctional dystopian fictional novel. Then again, that's what our world had become now.

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. My Umbreon ears were still glowing faintly for some reason.

'Orion!'

The voice made me jump. Even with extreme speed it would have been impossible to defend myself from the arrival of Fenn. The teenager was upon me in a heartbeat.

'What do you think you're doing going out without a coat in this weather! Not to mention you're supposed to be resting in the hospital ward right now! Seriously Orion?'

And that's when I realized all I was wearing was my overcoat over a thin shirt. Stepping away from the main gate, I attempted to hide my embarrassment although my Umbreon features did all the talking. With my tail between my legs and ears folded down against my short black hair, I looked like a dog being told-off by its owner.

'Uh...Morning Fenn?' My face reddened as I quickly understood there was no getting out of this one.

'Yeah, Morning alright! From what I've heard you've been up half the night traipsing round in just a shirt to keep you warm. Not to mention without a torch! No wonder-'

'Fenn. I had a meeting with Roan. The Wildling thing remember?' I interrupted, although her prompt glare made me wish I hadn't. Maybe I should have asked her to calm down, but that never ended well either. Instead, with a slightly exasperated grumble, I gave in.

'Let's go and get a coat on then.'

The young woman was trying to dismantle me with a solid glare. Without a twitch of warning she grabbed my hand, fiercely tugged me back towards the central yard without a word. All I could do was stumble along after her.

* * *

XXX

* * *

[ **2.37** ] Buffalo Springfield - For What It's Worth (1967)

I think it's time we stop, children, what's that sound  
Everybody look what's going down

* * *

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any events, location, and/or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. The views expressed by the characters and/or the narratives do not necessarily reflect the author's views. This fiction is rated T and may be unsuitable for young audiences. 'Fort Haste' is a fictional concept that is owned and regulated by ZenColour. Viewer discretion is advised_

[Edit 31/01/19 correct proofreading errors]

[Edit 01/02/19 because R'Love found {} can be used on FF!]


	3. Chapter 2

FH: WINTER

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"Fort Haste: WINTER" is a recount of a tale set within the Pokémon world - one in which everything has gone wrong. Here we meet the final survivors as they struggle to endure through hell and beyond. An unknown virus has wiped-out most of humanity, leaving behind children which seem to be less affected by the disease. In an attempt to preserve what remains of humanity, Fort Haste was bodged in the months following the pandemic. Even now, the settlement remains at the very heart of the ongoing apocalypse. For everything that has happened and all the trials humanity has faced - Fort Haste stands as a vision of hope.

Please note, this and following chapters will contain both narrative and speech in various dialects and languages. Anything said in Pokémon will be underlined as shown. Normal speech will remain unaffected, although _italics_ and **bold** may be used for effect following standard rules. For whistle calls ***…something like this…*** will be used, and any random flashbacks etc. are marked with {''}.

Fort Haste is a work of fiction written as a collaboration between ZenColour and Just-A-Reader0Love

* * *

AUTHOR NOTES

* * *

Zen: _Chapter 2 is here! We've been working on improving the flow of this one, as well as deciding to add more detail in where we could. Overall, I'm planning on shortening Fort Haste and removing a lot of filler that it had before. I'm excited to get these chapters out, and we're doing our best to churn out words as quickly as possible!_

R'Love: _This chapter was rather nice to update as it helped with a multitude of things, adding life to characters and the location as well causing a bit of a mystery. What mystery? Your gonna have to read further to learn what happens next as that's all I'm saying for now. :)_

* * *

 **HAYS SNH Version 4 (0068 PA)**

Forward written by I. K. Wyee [EXTRACT]

9000406224464 - Sinnoh Outreach Programme for Historical Preservation

 _The origin of the disease has been hypothesized by many, although now it is only possible to understand the V-DPP from the impacts its had. Past researchers have claimed that the virus was bio-engineered as a way of triggering evolution in stronger pokemon - although why this would then affect humans is a mystery. Unless of course, it was designed to be that way?_

* * *

 **CHAPTER 2**

* * *

An excerpt from 'Hays' Journals' III

 _The cause was unknown, the reason for such a turnover of life unprecedented. But such trivial contemplation was abolished. Now we had the stark nature of reality to survive. Time was our enemy, the future our friend. The sins of our past no longer mattered._

* * *

 **ORION's POV**

* * *

'We're late Fenn! Can't you speed things up a little?'

Fenn ignored my distress and pulled the bandage tighter. This had the twofold effect of squeezing air from my diaphragm and and causing a small yelp to escape from my throat. Tying the knot in a neat loop, I bit my tongue as she took a step back to admire her handywork. Clenching my fists would be a safer way to deal with the pain as the teenager finished off by adding a spray of ointment over the bandages for luck.

'That should do the trick.' She murmured to herself whilst screwing the lid back on the medicine bottle, 'No thanks to you! You need to stop getting your tail in a twist!'

Fenn knew I hated that phrase. The cheeky grin on her face proved the fact.

'Relax Orion. Nobody will care if we're a bit late.'

'It's more the fact that I'm hungry.' I pointed out wearly, buttoning my shirt back up. 'Did you really need to be that...uh...aggressive with the bandages? It does hurt you know.'

'By the looks of those scars, I see you've had worse.' She tutted, 'Knowing you, something will happen and we'll be doing this again next week. '

'Isn't that a little…' I fished around for the correct word, 'Ominous?'

'You know, you could smile now and then? I'm trying to make light of a situation here.'

Looking up, I was once again met by a harsh gaze. Fenn put away the medical supplies slowly, not breaking eye contact. Watching me inspect her handiwork by touch as I fidgeted with my shirt, her expression softened.

'How did you even get scars like those?' Fenn continued to press, picking my jacket off the floor and handing the overcoat over. With a slight frown on her face, it was clear that the teenager was subtly attempting to see if I had any more nasty scars in obvious places. The wispy fur coating my arms stood on end from the chill air.

'Well. I guess it was back when I was little. I think I fell? Or got into a fight on Mt Coronet maybe...' That wasn't a complete lie but I felt the need to bend the truth. Pulling my jacket back on, I tried to wipe the wrinkles out of the thick fabric. The clothing had begun to feel homely, and I felt myself relax under the comfortable garments.

'Wait? You've visited Sinnoh?'

I nodded, face reddening from Fenn's sudden interest. 'I'm from Sinnoh - well originally. It was a long time ago.'

'And then you moved to Kanto?' Fenn zipped up the medical supplies, ensuring everything was returned to its proper place. Brushing blonde hair out of her eyes, she set the bag down on the bedside table before straightening. Giving me a quick look up and down, I tried to stop myself from laughing as I spun half a pirouette.

'How do I look?'

'If you ever do that again, I will die from embarrassment.' Fenn cracked a grin, 'Seriously. Never again.'

Feigning a hurt look, I pulled at my sleeves before burying my hands in my pockets. Thankfully Fenn had let me sleep in my own room last night. The old farmhouse was probably a few degrees warmer than the sheds, and being back in my own bed was a gift from the Gods. Even if the backroom was just as sparsely furnished as the medical ward, it had a window that opened onto the kitchen rooftop and provided a clear view of the night sky. Now that light pollution was non-existent, the Milky Way could be seen in all it's glory soaring through the gloom.

'You done then?' I asked at last, already pulling open the door.

'That'll have to do.' Fenn paused, 'Is it normal for you to heal that quickly? It's only been a few days but those cuts are pretty much scabbed over now.'

I just grunted, 'Yeah. I guess so.'

She didn't push that conversation any further and I silently thanked her. I'd wasn't nearly quick-witted enough to outpace Fenn when she started to grill me with questions. Watching the teenager from the corner of my eyes, she pulled out her bobble hat and tugged it tightly over her ears.

'Let's go.'

As soon as we stepped out onto the landing, the front door slammed and somebody came bounding up the stairs. A mop of dark ginger hair peaked over the bainsters followed by Mike rapidly making his way upstairs. Upon seeing us the teenager stopped, almost tripping over his own feet. He sniffled before eyeing me critically. Seeing such a concerned expression on Mike's face was weird. Usually the slightly younger teenager wasn't the type to care much about others. With messy auburn hair and an oversized cream wax jacket, Mike didn't care much about his look either. Mud and grease covered his work trousers as a clear reminder of his job as Fort Haste's mechanic-come-electrician.

'Is everything ok? You guys were running a little late so I thought I'd check up on you…'

'On our way.' I answered quickly,

'Great. Jane said it might be worth checking up on you.' Mike flashed a weak grin before heading back downstairs. Fenn and I came only a few steps behind, the wooden steps creaking underfoot. The two-storey farmhouse was roughly symmetrical with four rooms top and bottom and a short landing between the two. Downstairs two log-burners in opposite rooms supplied most of the heat needed to keep the old Georgian house warm.

A couple of aerial photos depicted the farm a few decades earlier, with faded sepia tones outlining the old fence lines and poultry sheds. A few new buildings had been added since but not much had changed, apart from the machinery stood out in the field. The shadow of a grey Ferguson T20 could be seen in the yard - a machine which had since been converted into a petrol generator. It was one of the few bits of kit that even a kid could fire up and maintain. Now the ex-tractor ran power for the kitchens.

'Always makes me smile that does.' Mike commented on the picture.

He had already zipped up his wax jacket and was waiting impatiently at the door. The numerous pockets in the coast was stuffed with everything and anything you could imagine. More bizarrely, the teenager had the uncanny ability of knowing precisely where everything was within them - down to the last paperclip or drill bit. Having so much stuff puffed out the material however, to the point that it looked like he was wearing a tent.

Fenn threw on a heavy coat before we made our way outside. Freezing cold air hit your lungs as a sharp reminder that the fringes of winter was already here.

'I think everybody else should be out already.' Fenn added, kicking the door closed with a slam. It always had trouble closing. Following behind through the small front garden, we exited via the front gate and hotfooted it over towards the yard. The scent of woodsmoke hung in the air from numerous fires lit across camp. That stirred my memory.

'How are our wood stores looking Mike?' I asked the teenager. After zipping up his coat another notch to protect his neck from the chill, he visibly grimaced at the thought.

'Uh. We haven't got as much as I'd like. Enough to last another month maybe. Then we're on all that wet pine we cut down a few weeks ago. Better than nothing...but not the best.'

I grunted in agreement, trying to think out a possible solution to the problem. We couldn't just leave the wood to dry in the sun. Mostly thanks to a wet autumn, the ground still sodden underfoot from day after day of grey haze and drizzle. Now with winter on our heels, morning frosts were becoming the norm.

A light mizzle still clung to the afternoon air and although we didn't get very wet, it was a relief to be undercover again. Within a few minutes we'd crossed over to the yard. This was the heart of Fort Haste and already you could hear the babble of voices from the Foodhall. It was enough to twitch my ears painfully.

The Foodhall was the largest building in Fort Haste. It used to be an old cattle shed, with a open-sided steel structure composed of five twenty-foot bays. The red-painted struts were starting to fray from wear and tear over the years, as well as the splattering of cattle muck and dust. We'd barely managed to remove all that much of the grime. Concrete reached around seven foot high on all sides, with wooden cladding protecting the far end now housing the kitchens. Tables took up the remainder of the space, with a mismatched collection of chairs enough to seat around two hundred. Admittedly, it was a squeeze.

The interior had been swept clean and repurposed into Fort Haste's very own draughty events space. Most people simply knew it as the Foodhall.

Thankfully the three of us could sneak inside without making too much trouble. The tables had been arranged so that the youngest kids were closest to the kitchens. Not only did this mean that they were closer to the primary heat source in camp, but also further from the rain which had a habit of blowing through the large doorway. A thin smoke clung to the air from the stoves in the opposite end. From an earlier scavenging fenzy we'd managed to get our hands on three Rayburns which had been fitted in a row along the concrete wall. The old 50's appliances had the combined function of heating water which ran down and through the neighbouring barns-turned-accommodation blocks.

It was noisy under the corrugated asbestos roofing. It would fail the health inspection if anyone could be bothered in future generations. Scanning over the tables, it was clear that everybody was here already. Even the customary seats were left ready for sentries that came and went during the meal. It was a pain to be on duty during meal times. Quite often the kids drew straws when deciding their weekly timetables.

Fenn latched onto my arm, leading me to the table just as I realised I was zoning out. Loud, busy places often did that and following the apocalypse, Fort Haste at dinner time was as loud and as busy as it got.

'So you finally made it! We were starting to worry.' Jane spoke in probably the least worried tone humanly possible. She still managed to flash a smile to Fenn however. The two had been best of friends for as long as I'd known them. At times they even spoke and acted in a pretty similar way - albeit with Jane being the more reserved of the two.

I maneuvered myself into a seat carefully.

The occupants of Fort Haste, self proclaimed 'Hasties', were organised to be as efficient as possible. At times this often appeared to be a little too militaristic, but we often tried to pretend it was a fun summer camp. The latter meant that many of the kids could more easily accept that they would never see their parents again, and that food came out twice a day on little trollies. The kids were split into groups based on age which were then managed by around fourteen of the older Hasties. Above them were the 'Chain' which, unlike the Fleetwood Mac single, meant we were the top of the chain of command. Fenn had come up with the term because we were all linked and supporting each other.

Mike saw the chain as something which bound him to responsibilities.

There were a total of six of us in the chain - a bundle of quirky teenagers which held the fate of humanity in their hands. Not that there was any pressure or anything.

Mike worked as the grafter and all round odd-job. A kid of all trades but a master of none - with the added knack of being able to fix anything with either ductape or WD40. Seriously. He also had a thing for old weaponry and medieval history which came in handy now we'd been thrown back into the Dark Ages (for the second time). Sat next to him in her customary seat was Jane, the medical officer mostly involved with fixing anything that Mike couldn't. For the most part that involved people, as well as any weary pokemon who fell ill. But does that make her a doctor or a veterinarian?

Along from Jane was where Bass normally sat, a small girl and the youngest member of the Chain. She was currently helping set out the food trollies, and was the chief organiser of camp. Bass was in charge of timetabling and micromanaging every single thing that existed within the four walls of Fort Haste. With the help of Fenn, the two basically ran Fort Haste keeping everyone occupied and out of trouble. Bass had the uncanny ability of being everywhere at once. You'd have thought she could teleport.

Aside from me and Fenn, Insley was the final member on the chain and was also occupied within the kitchens. The tall girl was filled to the brim with sass, and had the mouth to match. Beyond a sharp mouth, she made an excellent cook - mostly because she had the spunk to get kids up and preparing food before sunrise each morning. If you don't want to get shouted down, avoid the kitchens or Insley in general. She had a habit of running a tight crew whilst managing the most important resource we had. Food.

It was at that very moment that Insley sat down with a plop into her chair. Taking a moment to pull it in a little closer to the table, she relaxed with her elbows on the edge. The teenager gave us all a cheeky look from under a button nose.

'Well, we're all pretty much here then? Just in time as well. Me and Bass were trying to work out what you guys _actually_ do around here - apart from moaning.'

We all forced a weak grin, my own smile failing to reach my eyes. That comment was a running joke that Insley had - one she had worn out before it even started. Tugging my cravat off carefully to as to avoid grazing the fur off my ears, I took a moment to relax into my chair. It had been a while since Fenn had allowed me to enjoy a meal with everyone. I'd missed the banter over the past couple of days and let a smug expression seep through my calm exterior.

'I kind of liked Resource Manager.' I chipped in, 'And Fenn can be Supreme Leader or something.'

'It takes a _supreme_ leader to keep you in line.' Insley returned with a smirk, 'It's good to see you back on your feet. Glad to see those vermin up at Berry Hill didn't want the trouble.'

Visibly twitching at the trigger word, I avoided Fenn's worried look rather poorly. Thankfully nobody else seemed to mind and had quickly turned to their own conversations. The rainstorm outside was starting to intensify. Water splattering onto the rooftop smoothed out the sharper edges to the flurry of sound. Listening to the sound of camp ticking off, the sudden yell had me jumping out of my chair.

'FIRST CART'

Jeff had taken the honours to yell the words that got the mealtime started. The boy was a little too young to be a member of the chain, which was a good thing when it came to Fort Haste's defences. Jeff had a voice like a foghorn. Anybody and everybody listened to him when he got going - not that they could block out his hundred-decibel siren-like commands. Jeff had taken on the position as Squadron leader quite happily, acting as a General when it came to Fort Haste's private army. He had nearly ninety armed children under his command.

Now Jeff was using his position of power to nab the first food cart and take it whizzing over to his own bench.

I quickly realised that I was getting strange looks from every seat around the table.

'Uh...Is everything ok?' I paused, pulling a knife and fork over to my placemat.

'You...' Fenn started to explain quietly but was cut through by the loud chortle on Insley opposite.

'You just yelped! Not to mention nearly jumping a foot out of your chair! Jeff must be hell'a loud to your fuzzy ears...'

I grinned sheepishly, trying to hide the flush of colour to my cheeks. Thankfully, Bass was there to save the day as the last member of the Chain arrived with a food trolly in tow. Passing out steaming dishes to each of us in turn, she flopped into her seat with a weary sigh. A moment later and we were all tucking into our food.

There was a slightly buzz in the air of the Foodhall as the noise descended into a muffled silence of eating, as well as the scraping of utensils on plates. I could still hear a few people snickering though, probably sharing some injoke or the latest story.

Majestic wasn't a word I'd use to describe the Foodhall, nor how we had outfitted it. A lot of effort had been made to make it serviscale. Still, there remained some strange grandiose to the way that old steel frames and rough breezeblocks hid absolutely nothing. The Foodhall stood proud in the way it simply was what is was. Warts and all - as well as a few strands of bunting we'd strung between the eaves. Up in the far rafters a pair of Zigzagoons had decided to build a nest. How they got up there still remained a mystery and inhabitants were rather shy.

Fort Haste was like that. It all worked, if only just.

For a single moment there was a blessed moment of calm. The tables were filled and those unlucky few stumbling in from a wet shift on sentry-duty had a steaming plate of food waiting. Even as I ate, it was difficult to tell what the brown mush actually consisted of. Now and then a pea, or a chip of potato was clearly visible - but otherwise the thick stew was an amorphous mash of unknown origin. I could have asked Insley what was in it, but the teenager got offended easily when people criticized her meals. Clearing my plate quickly nonetheless, with a contented sigh I lent back and let my ears pick out the comforting sounds of Fort Haste.

For a brief moment it was like a storm had passed and a serene silence had developed in the aftermath. Everything was as it should have been.

But for one thing.

A lone whistle called out across the fort.

In an instant my Umbreon ears jumped to attention. My tail perking up as, with a jarring flex of my neck, I picked out the high-pitched signal. It was an animalistic reaction I know, yet for a moment I felt like the whole world hung in the balance. Although the first whistle was too quiet for everyone else to make out, the repeated call was loud enough to burst the silence in the FoodHall.

Long. Then two quick short blast. Pause. Short short Long. Repeat.

 ***…WARNING…Feral…Approaching…6"…A….***

My stomach dropped.

'Just as we were getting started.' Mike sighed, ignoring the fact that everyone else had frozen in an effort to more clearly decipher the message. I was up in an instant, too quickly in fact as my recently eaten meal slopped around in my stomach. Ignoring the taste of acid on my tongue, I grabbed my cravat and pulled it down over my head swiftly.

All eyes were on me as I tried to raise my voice above the climbing chatter in the shed.

'Alright. ALRIGHT!' Everyone stay calm. We'll have a look to see what's going on.' I motioned to Jeff with a short wave, flashing a weak grin to try and calm the couple hundred kids in the food hall who were starting to show signs of panic.

'Finish up your meals while we check this out. Tough luck if you're on runner duty or under Jeff's command for this afternoon, you're coming with us. Can't be too careful.' I added for good measure.

The response was automatic and I strode towards the open end of the Foodhall.

Only silence remained within the valley of my footsteps.

Digging into a pocket and I pulled my own whistle up to my mouth and blew out a set of instructions. After a few short calls, mostly to ensure that the remaining sentries kept an eager eye out for the appearance of more Ferals, I reminded Fort Haste that this wasn't a drill; even if we had made a habit of completing such drills over lunch.

The rain started to hammer down outside. I grimaced. Why now?

Turning round, already there were kids running out and into the downpour. Some seemed excited at the prospect of what was happening, a few had steely eyes that somehow looked too old for their childish faces. Those not within the squadron remained at their tables, necks strained to catch a glimpse of what was going on. However, they seemed more than happy to stay inside where it was warm and dry.

'X-leader on duty Sir!'

I spun around to find Jeff stood to attention. He almost looked ready to give a salute. To be honest, such formalities were beyond most Hasties. Not the mention we were trying to avoid kids wondering why they were effectively in a military training school.

I gave up peering into the rain and focused my attention on the boy.

'I need the Squadron out and focused on the palisade at approximately 6"A, but have another five stretched out towards 3" or something. By the sounds of it we have a Feral around fifty metres out, but most likely it won't get close enough to make weapons worthwhile. I want two with guns at the back and the rest on bows. Nothing is to be fired until I say so. Got it?'

Jeff nodded, pulling a scarf out of his jacket pocket. He'd managed to scavenge one of those overtly rainbow-coloured knitted scarfs which a grandmother would make. Jeff wrapped this around his neck tightly. Pulling on some gloves, he gave me a quick nod whilst apparently unaware of my impatience.

The weather looked like it was only going to get worse.

'And keep those bows dry.' I iterated, already striding off towards the previous whistle call. I had learned the hard way that leaving wooden bows out in mucky weather usually resulted in snapped bowstrings.

I missed Jeff's nod as he fell into step behind. The remainder of the kids were a little wild-eyed at the sudden list of commands, but Jeff yelled loud enough to get the ball rolling. Two ran off to one of the five safe boxes which housed loaded guns, and a few more disappeared to the armoury to pick out readily assembled archery packs. In a matter of minutes we had a dozen kids with strung bows ready to fire, two teenagers with rifles, and a thin line of defence on top of the palisade.

In the distance I could hear Insley yelling something or other. I shuddered, not knowing what was worse for morale - a missed meal or an attack by Ferals. Insley got more than a little grumpy when she was hungry. Hanger, so called 'hungry anger' might have been a better word. Like _I'm going to rip you to shreds if I don't stay calm_ kinda hanger.

That's why Bass was in charge of caring for the majority of kids, and we kept Insley busy in the kitchens.

Clearing my voice removed some of the tension I'd built up across my shoulders. Having weaved our way to the north-side of camp, Jeff and I joined the sentry who was stood expectantly on top of the palisade embankment. Skidding to a stop, I turned to find Jeff only a few seconds behind but much more out of breath. The teenager wheezed for a moment and I ignored his drama for the sentry. She was presently tugging her hood across her face in an attempt to keep the rain out of her eyes. From what I could remember, I think her name was Megan.

'Sir! I thought it was…they…I…'

She looked close to tears and I placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. The small girl couldn't have been much older than twelve and bounced on the balls of her feet. Either she was cold or the uncomfortable anxiety of the situation was getting too much. Megan just pointed over the wooden wall and across the Lee slopes. There wasn't much cover to the north of Fort Haste, but it wouldn't have made much difference.

A handful of Ferals towered over the hedges. They strode through the rain with surprising speed.

'You did the right thing.' I comforted her, before pulling Jeff a step closer by his arm.

'See it.' I nodded in the direction of the beast.

About forty metres out and slowly approaching were what appeared to be three giant spiders. The rain only acted to outline the shadowy creatures which looked like something out a nightmare. Since the epidemic, the virus had acted to deform and mutate pokemon in gruesome ways. For this Ariados, that meant that they were now misshapen giants.

Easily standing ten feet tall, their legs were irrationally big for their bodies. Tiny heads were stuck to their streamlined legs but instead of a mere eight eyes, a mass of bubble-like headlamps seemed to froth out of the creature like foam. Between them were a pair of humongous fangs whose size alone made the beast front heavy. This only acted to propel them forward at a faster rate.

The Ferals were so tall that the mutant Ariados simply strode over the initial defences. The Lee slopes became denser the closer your got to the palisade, but the spiders simply walked overtop of our meticulously prepared deterrent. From behind, two smaller forms appeared from nowhere, although one had already got their foot stuck in a pitfall trap. The ground beneath the unlucky spider disappeared and the sudden tension threw the Ariados sideways.

'That's one down.' Jeff commentated. He already had his gun off his shoulder and was clicking the safety off the long rifle. Loading the weapon, he lowered the muzzle and eyed the creatures as they approached.

The lone Feral that had already fallen was in a frenzy - driving itself forward with only three legs working as it slowly ripped the others off. Green blood oozed out the wounds, with squirts of liquid fountaining into the rainstorm.

Now that they were pushing through razor wire and barbed stakes, the other spiders had dropped pace. In an attempt to weave through the defences they were wobbling precariously, too top heavy for their elongated legs. Water splattered off hardened shells, creating a looming danger sign out of garishly black and red markings.

'Shite.' Jeff swore, seeing how easy the spiders were tiptoeing ever closer. Only a minute had passed and already the Ferals were too close for comfort.

Gently motioning for the sentry to leave her post, I wave the archers up onto the palisade. With around ten armed kids up within sighting distance of the mutant creature, I felt a little more at ease. Jeff however, was gripping onto his weapon tightly, staring at the approaching beasts.

'OK.' I pulled him away from his thoughts, 'I want five arrows per kid. Any more than that and you get the gunners up and firing? Ignore the one at the back.'

'Right.' Jeff nodded, taking a breath and pulling on his game face.

He paused,

'You going to get out of my way then? I've got work to do.' He growled suddenly, making me freeze in confusion. That only lasted a second after seeing the small peep of a grin on his face.

'Yes _sir._ ' Pulling a mock salute, I slid down off the palisade let Jeff take control.

The teenager didn't need to be asked twice.

Ariados's as big as tanks were making their way towards Fort Haste - and there didn't seem like much we could do about it.

'SQUADRON! FIVE ARROWS EACH! AIM FOR THE EYES.'

Covering my ears, I felt the need to duck from the shear volume of his voice.

'IF ANY OF YOU FIRE TOO EARLY I'LL SWITCH YOU OUT FOR SOMEBODY MORE CAPABLE. YOU WAIT UNTIL I COMMAND. WE NEED THEM CLOSER TO MAKE A MARK.'

Unlike only a moment earlier, Jeff now oozed confidence. Wrapping his rainbow scarf behind his back, the boy folded his arms and surveyed down the line of archers. His gun hung precariously from his shoulder. All ten of the kids had their bows strung, and a single arrow nocked ready to fire. Two of them had longbows, while the rest more stumpy recurves that had made it through the apocalypse. Unlike competition shooting, none of them had sights nor counterweights. The children instead shot freestyle with a deadly accuracy that daily practice granted.

'You know what you're doing. If they attempt to cross the ten-metre mark then take them out!'

Jeff had lowered his voice a notch but still shouted. The teenager flashed me a wicked grin before pulling the hood of his coat up and over his cap. Casting a careful eye down the embankment, I watched the Squadron prepare themselves, the kids of various ages squaring their shoulders and setting their feet shoulder-width apart. Their weapons were a bit cumbersome and a pain to master (arrow burns and all) but weren't limited by the meagre volume of ammunitions we'd looted. Guns were precious and it was going to be a very long time until they were in mass production again. Then again, being able to punch a hole in a feral was no laughing matter.

'Steady! STEADY! COME ON! RELAX A LITTLE GUYS. DON'T LOSE FOCUS!'

The latter was said half in jest as the mutant Ariados moved in closer. It was clear that all of the children were a little flighty. Who wouldn't be when you had those towering monstrosities steadily powering towards you? The spiders appeared to walk without any need for haste (get it) though for some reason they seemed intent upon pushing through the l minefield. For some reason the palisade, embankment, and a shitload of arrows waiting to pummel what was left failed to act as deterrent. Did they really want us dead that badly?

A second giant spider stumbled suddenly into another pitfall trap. With a shattering crack, a pair of legs ruptured as it sprawled lopsided. The insect continue to fight its way forward even as it toppled forward onto a row of sharpened stakes. As if in slow motion, the wooden spikes punctured through the spiders sternum and gruesome head. The beast bellowed even as it's life fluid drained in green streams from the wounds. Hollowed sounds echo through the torrents of rain as the Feral struggled to pull itself free.

'Damn .' I grumbled. Things were starting to get messy and you had to think of the children.

Thankfully, my whisper didn't carry through the storm. With a quick look, I saw jeff with a much different expression - a mix of anger and muted exhilaration. Even if he was clearly in charge of the situation, it was all I could do not to jump in myself. The boy had a nasty past with Ferals, and a more involved one than most. Still, he managed to channel a darkened anger into a harsh exterior which kept the Squadron in line. It wasn't my place to get in the way. Jeff was in charge and I had to trust him to do his job. Just because we'd never had Ferals get this close didn't mean he was up to the task.

However, I couldn't help myself bounding up onto the palisade to get involved with the action.

'GET YOUR BOWS READY!'

The downpour intensified to the point that it cratered the ground, rapidly turning it to mud. Fort Haste sang like some crude musical instrument from the storm of raindrops hitting the sheet-metal rooves. Droplets splashed across my waterproof and trickled down my ears, before cascading down my neck. Not to mention my tail was now a sodden mass you could wring out if you tried. Moisture clung to my fur like glue. Welp, at least it was a free shower.

Jeff must have noticed my discomfort as he broke character long enough to mutter.

'Orion, you'll smell like wet dog for weeks.'

Chuckling at the comment, I didn't have time as Jeff jumped back into action.

'NOCK! DRAW ON COMMAND!'

The kids, who were doing their best to keep the bowstrings dry, shuffled and pulled the plastic sheeting off the tops of their weapons with a smooth motion. They had been drilling the same routine in this weather for weeks now. Thankfully, muscle memory acted to smooth out any slip ups or snapping of bowstrings in the rain. Their mismatched equipment was at once out in the elements. White fingers tugged out straight-shafted, Swanna feather arrows and nocked them on lightly . A few kids gave their bows a gentle tug to test the draw-weight.

Swanna make a habitual migration from Unova and kanto, and thankfully there's no longer a queen to maintain sovereignty over them. So the swans were ours for the taking - aside from death threats and other foul language only I could understand. Anyone else would only hear hissing. So much for being royal birds.

A cold chill started in my golden-ringed tail and ran up my spine.

Squadron was not the type of name that should've been given to armed infantry, or even archers. To be honest, it was a name that we stole out of some pre-pandemic sci-fi story. Such a name had been a compromise on my part. We'd originally split the group into an X and Y squadron, before realizing we didn't have enough kids to make it feasible. So now it was an all or nothing defence of Fort Haste.

The Ariados were easily at twenty metres distance now - closer than we'd ever had any feral previously. You could just about make out their individual eyes amongst the foam, frantically searching for an easy route to tread through a forest of barbed wire.

Jeff was a little jumpy. Somehow I knew that was simply a farce for thrill bubbling below surface. He was the kind of kid that enjoyed stuff like this - to the point that I made a point of reining him in.

'See if you can dent them.' I told the teenager firmly, 'If not, we call in the gunners.'

'Got it.' He gave me a little glance which wasn't overly reassuring.

A quick pat on the shoulder and I headed down off the embankment, almost slipping on and in the freezing mud.

Two kids with the guns sat at the bottom off the small rise. Rain bounced off the hoods of their coasts as they kept the two loaded rifles in their box. The lid was firmly shut, although both of the locks had been left open in preparation. Hopefully they'd remembered to leave the safeties on unlike last time. Jane had got some practice on bullet extraction the last time that happened.

'Keep those things dry.' I reiterated. We didn't want any of the guns getting rusty or misfiring. The last time we had, Mike had broken a weapon upon attempting to clean it.

'Yes Sir.' The two kids called out in unison, worry plastered across their faces. Eyes flickered up to the palisade unceasingly just Jeff readied the remainder Squadron.

Putting my whistle to my lips, I called out a short message to the rest of camp

 ***…WARNING…FIRING…6….***

Tugging at his scarf, Jeff lent on his rifle as he cleared his throat.

'ALRIGHT THEN. NOCK!'

'Orion?'

Fenn's voice made me jump and I cursed, almost slipping in the mud. I ran a hand through my hair, trying to flick the water off my Umbreon ears. I probably looked like nervous wreak. She had her coat wrapped around her and peered out from under a warm hat and a red rain hood.

'What are you doing here?' I demanded. Or at least I attempted to.

'How's it looking?' She avoided my question neatly, 'They're close enough to hit now?'

'Fenn it's not safe.' there was a hint of desperation in my voice. It seemed to slide past her. Fenn just wrinkled her nose.

'And yet we have a dozen armed kids fighting off giant mutant spiders with bows and arrows? Don't be a dimwit Orion.'

'FIRE!' Jeff yelled and this time both of us jumped. Though I am pretty sure Fenn can't yelp.

The sound of ten bows snapping in sync was somewhat satisfying. What followed was a moment of utter silence before a cacophony of sharp puncturing sounds. A loud whizz reverberated through the air followed nigh instantly - with what could be equated to nails on a chalkboard. There was no hint of victory in the Squadron however, with Jeff already preparing another volley of fire. Rain bounced off his coat.

'OK NEXT ROUND GUYS. AIM HIGH. JUST HIT THE EYES AND WE'RE ALL SORTED.'

Fenn grabbed my hand suddenly and I froze. Turning to look at my companion, I was expected some form of apprehension or fear on her face. Instead all I got was an angry glare as she mouthed,

'You've getting in their way Orion.'

It was then that I realised that the two gunners were started to unpack their rifles.

'Right.' I apologized, blood flushing to my cheeks, 'Sorry.'

'FIRE!' Jeff yelled again.

The tops of the Ferals were just visible over the top of the palisade. They were getting _that_ close now. Another volley shuddered into their forms and with a cry of triumph from the Squadron, one of the beasts fell. The legs of the mutated bug Pokemon snapped as it tumbled out of view. Rain muted it's anguish which were abruptly silenced as it implaced itself on the Lee slopes.

The rainstorm intensified into a downpour.

Just as the defensive was stepping up in intensity, a lone whistle call sounded across Fort Haste. Without warning it suddenly grew very cold. Somebody struggled to blow the correct call and started again after a stifled attempt.

 ***Danger…***

'Shite.' Fenn swore loudly as we decoded the signal.

 ***Danger…1"B…Feral…Distal***

I sprinted off towards the noise before the sentry had even finished. My tail stood out behind me, waving furiously to maintain my balance as me feet skidded in my boots. The post 1"B was at the very end of the palisade where the palisade made a transition into the K'field - a zone of almost no exterior defences. Slipping in the mix of puddles and muck - I nearly fell but managed to stay upright just in time to slide to a stop.

The boy who was unlucky enough to be on sentry duty was just repeating their call for the fourth time before they spotted me. Waving them down, he chewed up the last call signal before lowing the item.

 ***…Proximal…***

The sentry blanched before jumping into an apology.

'It's alright. What's going on? Where is it?'

'There?'

The boy didn't seem so sure himself, screwing up his eyes in an attempt to see further. Crouching down a little to meet their eye height, I matched their gaze and scanned across the surrounding territory.

Across the K'field was a lone Ariados. The mutant creature was approaching with some pace towards the Fort, moving as fast as it's oversized legs could carry it. The Feral's current path was on an intersection point for the narrow gap between the Keep and the embankment. Although a small wall had been built for that very reason, it was never enough to stop the towering bulk of the Ariados.

I plucked my whistle out of a pocket and up to mouth. Taking a breath and I blew out a list of trills to convey the short message.

 ***…Squadron...reserve…1"B…Urgent…***

After a moment's consideration, I decided to yell my full command across the remaining sentries manning the palisade.

'STAY ON YOUR POST…DOUBLY ALERT FOR MORE!'

What would happen next was anybody's guess. For whatever reason a load of maddened Pokémon had decided that the risk of attacking was worth dying for. As of yet, there was no understanding of what endgoal they had planned in their thick heads. The risk vs reward was not worth it at all. But still they came.

This Feral didn't seem to pause as it struggled along on its alternating yellow-striped legs. To me, it looked like something out of a nightmare. For the Hasties, it was as if the past that had returned to haunt them. I took a breath and prayed that the reserves would come quickly enough.

To my shock it was Fenn who appeared by my side first, panting heavily.

'It should be physically impossible to…' she dragged in a deep breath. '...to run as fast as that. Just as you were leaving Jeff tied up the remainder of the Squadron. The spiders don't want to die very easily.'

'Well we've got one paying a visit in a couple of minutes.' I cut through her chatter,

Fenn noticed the Feral pushing through a hedge across the opposite end of the field.

'Oh hell no.' The disgust in her voice was obvious.

'Yeah. you can say that again.' I grumbled, waving the sentry out of position. 'Swap out with someone and dry off in the Foodhall. We'll handle this.'

And by that, I meant that Fenn could fumble for her whistle before blowing out the final warning.

 ***...Lockdown...Urgent...Lockdown…***

My tail twitched. This was not good in anyone's book.

The sentry offered a quick apology before running off back in the direction of the main yard. I smiled slightly at the comical nature of the salute that she provided, before returning to the situation at hand.

Thankfully, Fenn was already on it.

 ***...Requesting…Backup...Urgent…1"B...Backup…***

I could feel the golden rings on my body starting to pulsate with frustration.

Black skies overhead made the day feel like night as the rainstorm storm swallowed Fort Haste whole.

The lone Ariados was striding across the K'field with pace. The extended hedgeline meant that it was nearly a hundred acres big, but the Feral churning across the distance with malice. Rain shadowed the creature, making it look unnatural in its eight-legged form.

'Sir!'

For some reason the sentry had returned with a bow in his hand.

'The hell? I told you to get back to safety.'

'I know Sir. But it seemed like a good idea.'

What didn't help was Fenn nodding in the background, already waving over another handful of runners that had bows in their hands.

Throwing my hands in the air, I gave up and ignored the niggling voice inside which agreed with my comrade. The sentry had got his hands on one of the better bows, an old relic of a recurve that had two limbs soundly bolted to a central riser. The bow had mostly likely been used for sport back in the day. Now the sentry and five others were nocking to draw blood.

Without a second thought, I scanned the horizon for more spiders.

'Right.' I rose my voice above the cacophony of the rain. 'I want a neat volley. Got it? Line up and aim for the eyes. We'll do two shots in quick succession to stun it.'

'And that'll work?' One piped up, an adolescent who was pulling on her leather finger guard with a hint of aggression. The sodden material was refusing to slip over his fingers.

'You bet.' I agreed, 'Stay sharp.'

Behind the row of six kids Fenn was motioning that a gunner was coming and I nodded, not bothering to sign anything in return. Even if I asked Fenn to get a safe distance away I doubt she'd listen. Having gave up any attempt at remaining dry, I flicked a water droplet off my nose. The sentries were already in the process of stripping the protective tarp wrappings from their weapons. Raindrops bounced off the plastic.

On instinct, my rings started to glow brighter as if to make up for the drop in light levels as the heavens polarized the sun. A gash in the weather turned the rain to hail. All at once an autumn thunderstorm blew in with ferocity from the west.

 ***...issues…weapons…negative…***

My Umbreon ears picked out the whistle call in the distance just as the guns started firing. There were a couple of loud pops, sending echoes bouncing back and forth between the farm buildings. Swearing, I motioned the sentries forward and got my own defensive plans firing into action.

And without warning the heavens opened. The hailstones were massive, easily a few mm across and they tore the ground to damp shreds. The children flitched as they hurried forwards, forming a short line behind a low gabion wall. Each had a quiver dangling from their waists. White-fletched arrows were already getting damp in the storm. Whatever affect the weather had on us wasn't worth comment compared to the oncoming Feral. The constant bombardment of icy ammunition onto the mutant Ariados's hard exoskeleton was kicking the creature into a frenzy.

However, all this did was push the creature into double speed. The Feral practically loped towards Fort Haste.

I could hardly hear myself think over the downpour.

'Get the bows ready…do the best you can. AIM FOR THE EYES remember!'

The small group of sentries and runners didn't respond, though each of them lifted an arrow up and onto their bowstrings. With shaking hands, the children knocked. I wiped the moisture from my eyes. Adrenaline was starting to kick in now and with it a warm energy pushing up through my stomach.

My rings glowed brighter still, but it was almost as if I felt detached from reality. All that mattered now was the mutant spider tearing towards Fort Haste. Protect your own.

'Orion!' Fenn shouted just as I got the archers to lift their bows, 'I've got a gunner.'

Too focused to turnaround, I acknowledged the teenager swiftly.

The Ariados stalked closer and with a sudden realization at how close it was I shouted to the sentry.

'FIRE!'

They didn't shoot in unison, but within a few second each had fired their shafts arcing through the downpour. Disappearing through the rain, I'd wondered if they'd all missed before my thoughts were erupted by a squeal. The archers already had another arrow nocked and after a moment's pause, I got them to fire again.

'AIM HIGH!' I called, squinting through the heavy downpour. It was a common error to forget just how quickly arrows dropped, especially in weather and winds like this.

'READY! FIRE!'

Their bows snapped in unison this time. The mutant Feral was approaching fast, skipping forwards metres at time. The first volley was a little early, but now that the beast was only thirty metres out of so, arrows thumped into their target with ease. Well, kinda. Three bounced off with a pinging sound from the spiders natural armour. Such arrow fire drew the mutated beasts attention to us. It was then that the Aridos seemed to see us for the first time. The humongous spider twitched, seeming to slow a little. One leg was dragging behind the others.

'NOCK!'

At this they all fired again, having taken it upon themselves to loose off as many arrows as they could. Just as I was preparing to shout them down, one lucky shaft imbedded itself into the foam-like eyes of the beast. I wasn't sure if the Ariados was injured, or just angry. The Feral bellowed, opening its gaping insect mouth to show us fangs the size of steak knives. Brown gunk flew from this aperture.

My body was yelling at me to back down, instinct commanding that I disengage before it was too late. A shiver of fear ran down my spine, right to the tip of my tail.

{' _Protect your own'_ }

A single arrow rose, nearly severed in two from the creatures face.

'Get the gun, NOW.' I called back, hoping the kid already had the thing loaded.

The sentries fired again and another two arrows found their target.

'Great shot!' I cheered. The kids were too involved with flinging off arrows to notice.

The mutant, however, seemed less impressed. It stumbled a little as if drunk. It's trailing leg, a mere eight foot long, dangled from behind acting to throw the creature off balance. flailing its pedipalps around in anger, it still pushed onwards. The spider took a gigantic step, and then another. Without warning it stumbled, and then fired off a spear-like pin needle towards the archers. With the sound like a gunshot it sizzled through the thunderstorm.

On any other pokemon, the poison stinger wouldn't have been overly significant. On the spider as big as a house, it was a hurtling projectile that flew towards us at terrific speed. Merely touching the poison-drenched fang would most likely put you on death's doorstop. Just the impact from the projectile would put a hole through concrete.

Thankfully the spine flew well wide, giving me enough time and venom to swear passionately,

'Fookin Bollocks.'

The Spider seemed much bigger now it was this much closer. Its eyes could be clearly made out, as well as the spotted markings that covered most of its body. The legs seemed mechanical and clunky. It was hard to make much more detail out as a bubbling nausea was starting to build in my stomach. A black haze was starting to shrink my vision down, tunneling it,and I shook my head in an attempt to fight the sickeningly familiar feeling.

'Not now.' I told myself sternly, 'Not now.'

The mutantated Feral tensed slightly before shooting off another poisoned barb. This time I saw it shoot through the air in slow motion, my mind working overtime as instinct prioritised over rational thought. Instantly I had calculated where the fang was heading, even as the sentries were too focused on knocking yet more arrows to kill the beast. Except they'd already lost their final chance.

That was until a gust of wind spiraled the poisoned spear over the heads of the archers. Even as the sigh of relief was building in my lungs, I realised I'd forgotten one very important thing.

Fenn.

The poison sting was headed straight for her.

 _{'Protect your own'}_

In one fluid, unthinking motion I steadied. There was no time for thinking as I launched myself off the ground in a single solid leap. Golden light shone fiercely from the my golden rings as I flung myself backwards. My eyes unfocused, seeing the world in double vision even as the monstrous poison stinger flew ever closer. Water shuddered off bowstrings as the archers knocked, hail flecking at their wide-eyed faces as the children realised what was happening - watching as the infernal spear sailed ever closer.

What was I thinking!? That barb would cut right through me!

 _{'You must protect her Orion. That is your purpose!'}_

Even as the vision flashed past it dawned on me what I was doing. That fang would obliterate me on impact.

But she couldn't die!

 _{'Now ORION'}_

The contact with Fenn was painful as I shoulder-barged her out of the way. My body lurched painfully, the pain in my stomach churning through my lungs to the point I couldn't fight it anymore. I had kept that accursed, seething pit of energy bottled up for long enough, struggling even as the force spilled out to fill my veins with a cold fire.

Fenn was knocked over with a jarring jolt, even as I landed painfully onto all fours. My hands sunk into the mud as I felt the impact dissipate painful though my hands and knees. That only lasted a moment as the momentum carried me flailing onto my side.

I closed my eyes and prepared for the worse.

 _{'ORION!'}_

I couldn't hold it back any longer.

The world shone brightly. My whole body seemed to fall out of focus as I was instantaneously charged with a cold black ember. A searing flame which grew to a malstrom of a fire, flowing like napalm through my body. A static hissed in the air like I was stood in the middle of a lightning storm. Fur on end, no sense of time nor place. No sense of reason.

For a single moment I felt utter bliss.

With a thud, something made contact and the world shattered.

And with what sounded like a million cascading glass shards, I was thrown backwards.

Everything faded to black and back again as the world flickered back into my awareness. My eyes blinked once, then twice to clear moisture form my vision. At this point my ears were ringing like church bells. Somehow I forced myself up and onto four paws, although any resemblance of balance was a fool's thought. All the blood drained from my head and I fainted.

Like hitting the light-switch, all colour faded from my previously glowing rings. This time, darkness was not my friend.

I hit the ground with a large crack.

Ugh.

Loud gunshots overrode what remained.

'Orion!'

The squeal of something in the distance could be heard faintly.

It was like trying to drag myself from up and out of water. My ears didn't seem to hear anything but a piecing ringing that made my head throb. Fighting to surface from the darkness, it seemed stupid to resist the inner calm devoid of all thought and feeling. But I knew better.

'Orion!'

Somehow slapped me across the face.

The growl grew deep down in my diaphragm, building upwards before it exploded across my throat. My face stung and everything flooded into its proper place as feeling returned to my body in a solid lurch. Gunshots vibrated through my eardrums like the bullets themselves, explosions that echoed through my head with startling lucidity. I bared my teeth on instinct, not wanting to show that I was prey.

Was Bass kneeling in front of me. Insely? Jane? Heck it might even be Jeff.

Fenn?

My senses returned more slowly than I thought they would. I lowered my hackles sluggishly, no longer showing my fangs. The growl turned to a whine as I fought off the urge to puke.

That's when I saw who was standing over me.

'Jane…?' I questioned the fuzzy outline

'It's Insley you doorknob! What the hell did you just…Orion look at me!'

Groggy.

'Insley…? What...urgh…'

She grabbed my shoulders and shook me then.

'Damn it…where's Jane when you need her!?'

The latter was said under her breath, which I was struggling to filter out. Insley was shaking my shoulders like a ragdoll didn't help much. My ribs stung like nothing else as I fought myself into a seated position. Startlingly, the teenager managed to force me back down. She twisting me over into the recovery position (on my left side to be exact) somewhat aggressively.

'Orion…you need to remain calm and breath slowly…' She spoke as if she was approaching a wild animal, even as a hand remain firmly on my shoulder. 'Just breathe alright? This is enough of a clusterfook without you dying or some shite.'

I twitched, too afraid that I'd speak like a Pokémon again. My heart, although still pumping blood about my body, felt stiff with that black energy I'd fought to bottle away. The power shimmered just with reach and I refrained from groping for it. Oh how I just wanted to feel the energy infuse though my muscles once more.

Hail stung my cheeks.

'Is...?' My tongue felt rubbery and I tried again, 'Is...Fenn?'

Insley studied me for a moment, unable to hide the worry in her eyes.

'Just shut up and pretend everything is alright. The Feral's gone down so you can relax now. Jane will be here any minute.'

The last part seemed more of a self reassurance than a phrase meant for my ears alone.

I heard some shouting, though I failed to translate what it meant.

Reality wasn't the right colour and I struggled to think. Was the sky always red?

Did it happen again? No. Not now.

Slowly I felt blood return to my brain, though it was with discomfort that I realised how wet and cold I was. A damp sleet was still cascading out of the sky. I shivered uncontrollably as the wet ground sucked the warmth out from under me.

'Insley? I think bre can get um now…'

'Seriously Orion? You ok buddy?' The tone of voice had risen so it sounded more like she was talking to a pet than a person.

'Insley.' I growled, before realising that probably wasn't helping the situation.

'I don't get the blame when you turn up amnesic'

I couldn't argue with that comment. Clenching my teeth, I pushed myself up into a seated position ever so slowly. Whatever that energy had been coursing through me moment before was gone. All that was left was a hollow feeling of emptiness and fatigue - and a thumping headache. The dizziness swelled as I found my feet. It never used to be this bad!

What was wrong with me?

Insley caught me as I stumbled and held me upright.

'Sir! Is everything ok?'

That was...Jeff? What was he doing here? Wasn't he supposed to be manning the embankment?

Now I remembered. Gunshots…hail…Ferals...Fenn…?

'We need to take you over to Jane.' The boy wiped as his nose, 'She'll have a proper look at you.'

'What did you think I was doing?' Insley snapped.

All I could was let myself be walked along slowly, the girl golding my arm as she guided me not-so-gently. It was a struggle to remain focused, my body no longer feeling my own as I stumbled and slid back across the yard. Being too tired and confused to accept reality was most likely a blessing. My feet shuffled through what felt like yet another lifetime.

 _{'ORION! It's not like you can keep getting second chances! Failure is not a option!'}_

Memories were spiralling past even as I blotted them out. Second chances were not as easy as they'd been made out to be.

The rain stopped suddenly.

I must be inside.

'Here. sit down'

Near falling into the chair, it was hard enough to keep my eyes open. Blackness was spreading toward the corners of my vision like I was sinking into treacle. The more I tried to free myself the worse it became.

'Orion! Buddy!'

My head jerked up at that.

'God.' It was a struggle to make out Jane's soft words, 'God what happened…uh…Could you Insley?'

'I'm…'

My voice failed to recuperate. Why was I so weak?

'Can do…' The girl's voice shook a little 'You're lucky Fenn sent me here ahead to get things prepared. He's as white as white. You'd have thought he'd seen a ghost. '

Jane muttered the last part even as Insley filled in the gaps,

'Yeah. And the spider got the bad end of the stick. Orion somehow manages to reflect a poison sting the size of a javelin, gets knocked out, and then Fenn asks me to help. Where the hell even is she?'

'One of the younger sentries ...' her voice began to muffle as if falling away from the world.

I think I blacked out for a bit then. The lure of sleep and heavy eyes dragged me under and I swam in the icy embrace. Submerged in shadows, it was a battle to keep my past from floating back to surface.

 _{'We were so close with you Orion. You just needed something more. No matter how much we try. You are not strong enough!'}_

What could have barely been half an hour fluttered by in an instant.

Reality hit me like a train as I vomited.

I groaned, picking out Insley's voice again even as bile seared my throat. Puking again, I found a stench clinging to my nose as I sneezed. The jerks sent crescendos of pain searing between my ears.

'Aren't those herbs, you know…for Pokemon?'

'Well…you know how it is…'

A bitter taste clung to clammy tongue. The residue of something remained stuck in my teeth and I raised my hands in an attempt to claw away the sickly herbs. I retched again upon realising that the same mush had been forced down my throat.

It was then that I decided to throw up.

'ugh…sorry…'

I apologized, only then noting that I was on the floor. Perching on my hands and knees, it was all I could to hold myself up off the floor.

Someone patted my back gently and I retched again. Definitely not a good day.

'Drink this up Orion. It'll help.'

Falling onto my backside, I let Jane pour the liquid into my mouth even as my eyes managed to focus back on her reality. The girls small spectacled face matched my frown with concern, eyeing me carefully as she took a slow step back.

'What...what was that?'

I pawed at my tongue, trying to scrape the evilly bitter taste from my memory.

Jane didn't answer, though I managed to make out Insley sniggering in the background. We must have been inside the medical wing - but only barely. The door was still open to the storm outside and by a quick inspection, it was clear we'd only made it a few feet inside the building.

Once it was clear that I was no longer discarding my stomach on the floor, they moved me to a more comfortable room. Insley and Jane needed to hold me up as they half-dragged me into a cold room. The blankets that came a few moments later did little to fight off the chill.

'How are you feeling? Less dizzy?'

Jane pulled a chair round for herself and slumped into it with a sigh. Adjusting her glasses on her nose, she took one long look at me through the lenses. Her eyes looked bigger with the added magnification.

'Um...better…Is…breon?' I slurred the words. Was I so tired that my mind was reverting back to square one?

'Fine Yes.' Jane answered, though there was uncertainty in manner. She had a notepad resting on her knee. It wasn't clear what for.

'Sorry about the revival herbs by the way. It was all I could do at short notice.'

Grumbling at the reminder of the ordeal, I took another sip of water to drown the burning sensation in my lungs.

We sat in silence for a short while.

Jane scratched at her nose a little nervously. Looking around the meagre room and the dusty window, it was clear she was fumbling for what to say. I wasn't sure if the rain outside was turning into a clearing shower, or if the numbness in my ears meant I could no longer hear. Hopefully the first.

'There's something I need to tell you Orion.' Jane spoke softly.

I paused, scrunching up my eyes.

'Breon?'

Great, I couldn't even speak anymore!

She sighed, though I wasn't sure whether it was because I just spoke Pokemon again or it had something to do with whatever she was toying over. Reddening at my own slip up, I instead attempted to relax and remove the feeling of vertigo still twisting up my senses. Those herbs gave one hell of a hit. It was like I had adrenaline for blood.

Leaning over to wrap the blanket around me a little tighter, it was a while before the girl spoke.

'Nobody was harmed in the attack apart from one girl. Megan. She was the one on duty who first spotted the Ferals. When trying to help she got a splinter through the thigh. Fenn's looking after her now.'

Jane paused, looking over her shoulder and out the door as if to check for eavesdroppers.

'I don't think you're in the right mood or frame of mind to hear this right now - but I'm on Fenn's orders. When I checked Megan over just before you came in...well...'

Jane played with her fingers awkwardly, what was making it hard for her to say what she needed to say? It can't be that bad right? The again, she had the most serious expression I'd even seen. That took me back a little.

The teenager took a deep breath before continuing

'She's like you Orion. Not an Umbreon I mean but she's...She's got Pokemon fur on her. But it's kinda weird…'

Jane trailed off, leaving only silence.

My mind span.

I felt like being sick yet again.

'You've...you've got to be kidding me.'

* * *

XXX

* * *

 _[_ _ **3:26**_ _] The Rolling Stones - Street Fighting Man (1968)_

 _Hey think the time is right  
For a palace revolution  
But where I live the game  
To play is compromise solution_

* * *

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any events, location, and/or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. The views expressed by the characters and/or the narratives do not necessarily reflect the author's views. This fiction is rated T and may be unsuitable for young audiences. 'Fort Haste' is a fictional concept that is owned and regulated by ZenColour._


	4. Chapter 3

FH:WINTER

* * *

"Fort Haste: WINTER" is a recount of a tale set within the Pokémon world - one in which everything has gone wrong. Here we meet the final survivors as they struggle to endure through hell and beyond. An unknown virus has wiped-out most of humanity, leaving behind children which seem to be less affected by the disease. In an attempt to preserve what remains of humanity, Fort Haste was bodged in the months following the pandemic. Even now, the settlement remains at the very heart of the ongoing apocalypse. For everything that has happened and all the trials humanity has faced - Fort Haste stands as a vision of hope.

Please note, this and following chapters will contain both narrative and speech in various dialects and languages. Anything said in Pokémon will be underlined as shown. Normal speech will remain unaffected, although _italics_ and **bold** may be used for effect following standard rules. For whistle calls ***…something like this…*** will be used, and any random flashbacks are marked with {"}.

Fort Haste is a work of fiction written as a collaboration between ZenColour and Just-A-Reader0Love. Both are very thankful for the additional help from Oblivion Wave Productions as a beta reader.

* * *

AUTHOR NOTES

* * *

Zen: _A big thanks Yoshimaste (you made my day) for your review, as well as everyone for stopping by and trying out our second take at this fic! Also a massive thanks to Oblivion Wave Productions for joining the team as a Beta reader. The next chapter may take a bit longer than we would like, but we're doing our best to turn FH into something really epic._

R'Love: _This chapter, I had quite the bit of fun with this one. Imagining how a character would reasonably react to certain things is very fun on the mind. To learn what I am talking about, read the chapter below! Also thanks to Oblivion Wave Productions, he is gonna be the guy who is gonna notify us on any last second mistakes that are made so that they can be corrected as soon as possible. Hats off to him! (Also he gives very good reviews.)_

* * *

 **HAYS SNH Version 4 (0068 PA)**

Forward written by I. K. Wyee [EXTRACT]

9000406224464 - Sinnoh Outreach Programme for Historical Preservation

 _To this day, the V-DPP Anomaly remains unexplained. Many doubt it's existence, but the contradictory nature of the event remains preserved in the writing of F. Hays. Little is preserved of the event, although a number of cassette tapes from before the epidemic suggest time gaps or paradoxical occurrences. Most famously, this includes material produced by a successful pop-group which by all accounts is impossible, given that the group had broken-up decades previously_

* * *

 **CHAPTER 3**

* * *

An excerpt from 'Hays' Journals' III

 _Instinct seeks a way to survive. But what are we without spirit?_

* * *

 **ORION's POV**

* * *

'FENN!'

I'd spent enough of my life moaning about the cold. To be fair I was usually the hardy type, able to withstand a range of extremes without too much discomfort. Maybe being part-Pokemon helped. But today it was different. Rolling out of bed, I was shivering within a few seconds of throwing off the covers. Feeling around on the floor for my customary pile of clothes from the night before - my frantic searching came up empty. Only my boots were left, and they lacked any socks typically stuffed in the top.

The sun was shining warmly through the windowpane - well, except with the 'warmth' bit. For some strange reason the window was ajar from the night before. Gusts of frigid air whistled around the panes. The glass rattled slightly as I slammed the aperture shut with a firm shove.

Wagging my tail and bouncing on my toes a little, it was all I could do to keep the heat from escaping my body. Grabbing a blanket to throw around my shoulders,I actually wished I had _more_ fur over my body.

Hopping over to the door, I pushed it open and poked my head around slowly.

The landing was empty.

In fact, the whole house felt dead.

Usually Fenn would be up and in the meeting room this time of day. It was a typical thing she did early in the mornings to get any admin out of the way. Then again, I didn't even know what time of day it was. Without a watch, I had to squint out of the far bay window to guesstimate whether it was morning, afternoon, or I was stuck in one of those strange dreams again.

I didn't even remember going to bed.

Yet here I was, near naked and without anything to throw on.

'FENN!' I shouted again, only to descend into a coughing fit. A sore throat was the last thing I needed.

Downstairs I could hear the fire spit a little. Apart from that, nothing.

Sighing angrily to myself, I quickly thought through my options. Either I could go and find Fenn, or just go find something for clothes - unless maybe I could find Fenn with some clothes? Both would be good. Or I could just stay here and curl-up in the remaining warmth of my bed.

Even if the latter was very tempting, I resorted to shouting again.

'FEEENNNN!'

Pulling the blanket tightly over my shoulders like a cape , I wandered out onto the landing

and down the stairs. My bare feet were perched on the wooden steps as I tiptoed my way down into the hallway. With ears stood up on end, I listened out for any sound I could. In part this was with the hopes of finding Fenn, but also to avoid anybody else. I didn't particularly want to be seen wandering around in my pajamas.

With both bedrooms empty, I trotted down towards the library.

Putting my hand on the doorknob and I yelped in surprise when it opened without warning from the other side. Jumping back niftily, I rolled onto my toes and with it a loose fighting stance. Whoever was coming through the door, I was ready.

I was a little confused when a very tired Fenn stared at me through the doorway.

'I thought it was you.' She yawned, blinking sleep from her bloodshot eyes 'What do you want?'

In a hurried manner I gestured to my goosepimpled body.

'Clothes Fenn! Clothes? Where are they?'

She blinked a few more times before my words seemed to register,

'Uh…oh yeah. Sorry Orion.'

Fenn remained standing there and a shiver ran down my spine.

There was a long pause.

'So, where are they?' I asked in the calmest manner I could, gritting my teeth for good measure.

'Sorry. They're drying off next to the fireplace in our room.'

Fenn pushed past and I fell into step obediently. Following the girl back down the corridor, she unlocked her bedroom door and pushed it open gently. I almost tripped over her as she waited at the entrance. The living room had been converted into a accommodation by the addition of a few bunk-beds, although Insley had one to herself. The scent of the room washed over me and I sneezed, rubbing the smell away with the back of my hand.

Opposite a fiercely burning stove stood a clothes horse. The precarious wooden frame was doing it's best to hold up a small mountains of clothes. I identified what appeared to be my entire shirt collection, as well as my green rifles jacket strewn over the stand.

'What's the matter now?' Fenn asked tiredly, already poking at the clothes to see what was dry.

'There was stuff in that coat!'

'I know Orion.'

'And...Bre….' I stuttered for a few moments but Fenn gave me a solid glare. Without words, she rapidly conveyed that I was making a big fuss out of nothing. Shrinking under her gaze, I tiptoed across the room to start bundling up my garments as neatly as I could. This had to wait however, as I was quickly drawn to Fenn's neatly made bed. Spread across the white sheets were the emptied nicknacks from my jacket, all laid out in neat piles.

My tongue struggled to get the vowels out as my voice shimmied into a muted whimper.

'See.' Fenn folded her arms in triumph, 'Nothing to worry about! Anyways, you never told me you carried so much junk on your person. Nor that you had some poorly sewn hidden pockets in the sides of the thing...'

She lifted my coat off the horse and shook it gently, as if expecting loose change to fall from the garment.

I eyed her carefully, at little uneasy at her tone of voice.

Her hard expression softened slowly, before she sighed. Waving me over, she started pulling socks and shirts off the rack. Folding them haphazardly in the air, she handed my clothes over one by one. All I could do was juggle the steadily growing pile against my chest.

'Did you want to talk about this stuff or not?' The teenager said at last, watching me from the corner of her eyes.

Pulling on a shirt, I fumbled with the buttons even as I shivered from the cold. Even though the fire was roaring behind the glass of the log burner, it wasn't giving off much heat.

'What is there to talk about?' I queried, feigning ignorance.

Fenn raised an eyebrow. She was in the process of handing me a pair of socks only to find me struggling to balance a scarf over my shoulder. Not waiting for me to finish, she balanced the socks on the bundle I had stuck in the crook of my arm.

I didn't see her pace over to a bed and pick up an old cassette from the nearest pile. It was only a moment later when she was waving the coloured plastic in front of my face that I could react.

'For example, why you have a couple of these?'

Juggling my bundle from one hand to the other, I plucked the scratched blue C60 tape out of her grasp. It didn't seem to matter, as Fenn now had what appeared to be a spork, penknife, and a collection of random pens in her other hand. Still shivering, I decided to drop my garments with and tug on a shirt and trousers.

'Or...how about these?'

Gritting my teeth, I tried to ignore my growing annoyance at her going through personal items.

'More Tapes?' I queried, wondering why she was making a fuss about what I carried around in my coat. 'They have music on them.' I added after a pause, unsure if she knew about the technology. It was a struggle to button up my shirt with frigid fingers.

'I know what they are Orion. This one in particular looks like an old mixtape or something.' She had somehow gotten the C60 back in her hands and out of mine. She turned the clunky plastic over a few times, struggling to make out the faded sharpie. 'Azure? What's that even supposed to mean?' Fenn continued to prod questions in my direction, 'Where did you even get these?'

Bundling up my clothes once more, I turned my back to the teenager and pulled the remainder damp garments off the clothes horse. Being at least partly dressed, I ran a hand through my hair and tried to gather calm the butterflies in my stomach. Hadn't I made it clear that I didn't want to talk about it.

Turning round, Fenn had her arms crossed. Her blue eyes had narrowed, brows furrowing.

'Are you going to answer me or not Orion?'

'Seriously Fenn.' It was all I could do not to shout, 'Am I not allowed to have a few cassettes stuffed in my pocket.'

Fenn shook her head.

'I'm just curious Orion. '

'Look...I got them from a friend. Alright?' I pulled my green jacket on, feeling a swell of relief upon being back in the comfortably, well worn coat. Tugging the collar up, I quickly proceeded to return my belongs to the small pouches from which they came from. Sighing to myself, I wondered if Fenn knew she was being rude. Was this a human thing? You didn't see me going through her stuff did you?

'And you carry them on you all the time?' Fenn watched me put away my nicknacks with some intrigue, 'And you just happen to keep the cassettes in a secret zipped pocket at the back? And you carry them on you all the time? That's a little weird Orion.'

'Just drop it Fenn. They mean something to me ok?'

My tongue struggled with the words and I heaved out a sigh, squishing a ball of yarn and a couple of screws into my chest pocket. The trenchcoat doubled in weight with the bits and pieces stuffed haphazardly into every conceivable spot, but I completed the task with a smooth efficiency. I guess I was as bad as Mike in that respect. As least I didn't carry random tools on me too. Then again, his tools had a purpose.

'Are you sure those socks are dry? You do have…'

'Yes.' I snapped, anger finally flaring in my chest. 'Yes Fenn I do know. Just drop it. I'm not in the mood for this bullshit this morning.'

Snatching the last tape out of her hands, I slide the storage device back into my jacket and zipped the pocket shut stiffly. The jacket had lost it's homely smell and now stank of detergent. Not to mention it likely needed re-waxing or whatever you did to make it waterproof again. Trying to avoid the smell of strange chemicals, I turned to see Fenn looking a little pale.

I wasn't sure if Fenn had ever seen me angry before.

'I'm sorry Orion. I was only trying to help.'

'Thanks Fenn.' I replied in the least thankful tone I could. 'Just don't go prodding around with people's past.'

Perking up the collar a bit more, I tried to relax and let the energy seep out of my body. I'd become fidgety and short tempered over the past week following the Feral attack. The near-death experience had awoken a worrisome feeling inside which I'd rather have buried. Anxiety was one thing, but things were starting to get difficult in Fort Haste too. Everyone was on edge following the attack. Subsequently, they all wanted me to come up with an instant solution to seemingly every problem they had. There a bump in the night in the bathroom? Get Orion. People wanted easy fixes to complex problems - and I was fed up of asking the Hasties to just have a little faith. I'd been working myself to death in the hopes of being tired enough to fall asleep.

Maybe that's why I snapped at Fenn.

'You like the Beatles?' She asked, not the one to give an apology twice.

'What?'

'The Beatles? You had one of their cassettes, 'Everyday Chemistry'. I've never heard of it.'

'It's an old one.' I replied curtly, trying to shut down the conversation. Sticking my face into my coat, I tried to nuzzle out the homely scent which once saturated the fabric.

Fenn was giving me a stare. I'd known her long enough to understand that it meant I'd been doing something weird again. She had this strange, wide-eyes expression which seemed to pierce right through my soul and out the other side. I shrank before it, my ears naturally drooping.

'What is it Fenn?' I queried, uncertainty touching my previously angered tone.

She chewed on her lip.

'No it's nothing.' She changed her mind rather quickly,

'Actually, are you ok Orion? You've been...well...'

I didn't know know how to answer that. So to give myself some extra time, I bent down to tie my boots on. The leather laces were starting to wear thin, although the heavily-worn footwear had managed to stay in one piece.

Straightening, Fenn was making alarmingly direct eye contact.

'Orion? Everything's fine? Right?'

'What would make you think otherwise?'

A faint smile crept over her face.

'You're asking that. Honestly? Look at you Orion! You're part Pokemon and now...and now we know that somebody else is too. As if the world wasn't messed up enough as it was. You've been acting strangely ever since...well ever since the Feral attack.'

Looking at me with slight apprehension, she finished,

'I'm just checking in with you, alright? Nothing crazy going on up there? No more magical Pokemon powers you want to tell us about? You're not going to start shooting shadow balls at people that get on your nerves?'

The last thing I was expecting was for her to pull me into a hug.

'We'll all a little worried about you. That's all.' She explained over my shoulder.

Letting go quickly, we finished packing up my clothes together, tidying up what else I had in my bedroom. Fenn convinced me that I didn't need to carry everything I owned on my person, so now I had a little box of belongings to go next to my bed. With that all done and dusted, it wasn't long before my stomach started rumbling.

'What time is it?' I asked at last, dusting off my trousers.

'Uh…' Fenn checked her watch, 'Just past two. There wasn't lunch today so you didn't miss out - well apart from breakfast of course.'

Well, at least I hadn't slept through the whole day.

After a long moment to pull myself together, I dropped my shoulders and properly thanked my second in command.

'Look...I don't know the best way to say this. I'm sorry.'

Fenn seemed a little taken aback by the apology, looking up slowly. 'What for? This isn't you still feeling bad about the washing earlier?'

'No!' I snorted, 'For, well. You know. Looking after me...and washing my clothes. Organising my stuff and all. It's a great help.'

She smiled, before turning it into a rather cheeky grin.

'Don't lie to me Orion. I know you hated me cleaning your stuff. Just go and do what you need to do.'

I nodded,

'And next time,' Fenn added just as I was leaving, 'Next time, you get to wash your own stuff. Weekly would be good. You stank.'

* * *

 **FENN's POV**

* * *

I turned the pages slowly, reviewing what laid before me with a sigh. The handwriting could have been much better, and the sentences somewhat clearer to read. Then I was like that - ever the realist. Nothing was ever perfect. Jane might have been more optimistic, Insley less so. Whether or not anybody in the future would ever pick up and read my scrawling handwriting was another matter. For now, the small book was just the start. A record of the history we were making.

I fought off a yawn.

The story of us Hasties didn't truly begin here in camp - but instead in the months before. Fort Haste arose because the last surviving quareteen zone was overrun. Humans were supposed to be clever and able to out-smart whatever challenge arose. But you only need one exception to the use. What came was the zombie apocalypse everyone imagined but nobody really wanted. People didn't get zombified, they just died. Maybe some turned into Ferals...

We didn't know what was happening with the little girl Megan yet. She was about twelve from what I had written on her record - so maybe she wasn't so little after all. Megan had been unlucky enough to get infected during the Ferals attack a few days earlier. Jane had even suggested that she may have been infected before then and we didn't know.

Nobody really knew what the virus did, nor whether it could actually turn people into Pokemon.

And then there was Orion - but he was his own mystery.

Nobody really knew how old he was, nor where he was from. The man (for he looked too old to be a child anymore) was the type of person that was utterly paradoxical. He had the hardened appearance of a soldier. If not from his dress, but by the stiff way he held himself. Yet Orion's personality was at odds with his appearance. The man was jumpy, sometime childish, other times deadly serious. You never could never predict his next emotion. Since the Ariados invasion he'd been reclusive, and pretty-much nocturnal.

Often I wondered just how much of an Umbreon he really was.

Yet another comment to add to a list of unknowns.

Setting down my diary, I massaged my scalp to relieve the small headache growing there. I once thought it was kinda cool to write by candlelight, but that was before a virus wiped out the known world. Now we had to make do. And I was running out of biros.

I sighed, pulling myself up into a better posture though this was difficult while sat on the stout wooden chair. The room was dark and I collected my plush down jacket with shaking hands, tempted to pull on my gloves for good measure. Although it was still way too early to be getting out of bed, I'd found myself unable to sleep. It was one of _those_ mornings.

The library had come my own private recluse. Bass and Insley were both late risers, and I'd had enough listening to the latter snore. At one point her breathing sounded more like gurgling than anything human. You'd have thought by now I'd gotten used to it? Bass managed somehow, though she could sleep through anything if she got the chance. Hell, once I had to double check to make sure she wasn't dead.

The door to the library creaked open on its hinges, revealing the storage room inside.

You see, the so-called Library didn't hold books as such. It was more of a general storage space that just happened to have a few books. A couple of them were actually worth reading. Old steel shelving had been placed wherever there was room and the panels were covered with as much stuff that could physically fit. It was a mixture of everything. Whether that was old DVDs, packs of toothbrushes, china plates, plastic knives - the lot. Here were Items that had been scavenged from the ashes of the old world.

Without a flashlight most of it was cast in shadow, a sombre hue that exaggerated the wonders of a modern society that was now lost.

The library felt like a museum composed of artifacts only months old.

The library used to be the farmhouses kitchen, which had been stripped bare months prior. Only the cellar door remained to indicate the rooms original purpose - and that hadn't been opened since we first arrived. In fact, I was pretty certain we'd lost the key. For all I knew it was empty.

I guess we'd never know.

Add it to the list Fenn.

A stout desk and old office chair was the only comfort in the storage room. It was here that I spent a lot of my time - hidden amongst the comforts of my past. Slumping down in my seat, I rubbed at my eyes tiredly. Stifling a yawn took some effort. Pulling my diary towards me, I flicked open the pages to my last bookmark.

Where did I even begin?

Well...I have to admit that Orion had been on my thoughts a lot recently.

We all have stories, each one of us owns a narrative that defines us. For many in Fort Haste, this story was wiped clean during the pandemic. It was our future that united us all and the unceasing fight for survival. Fort Haste was our family and, even though some like it more than others, Orion was our leader. But he was different - his life started here with camp. Somehow I struggled to imagine the young man before it all, just doing normal things. How did he end up the way he was? Orion had always shrugged off his Pokemon features as being caused by the virus. But beyond a casual conversation he directed any questions away from the topic. Orion didn't talk of his past and thus by extension neither did anyone else. I couldn't imagine him _not_ looking like an Umbreon.

It was Orion that had saved us from the ruins of the quarteen zone and in that respect we owed him our lives. Back then he'd been more confident, decisive, and more human. A leader perhaps. Ever since the attack (and even Berry Hill before then) he'd been acting differently. The man had slowly become quieter yet more obsessive in his work. His personality switched between anxious and buoyant without apparent cause. In a way, he'd been acting more like an Umbreon than a person. And not just because he was steadily becoming nocturnal.

Whatever had happened that day up on Berry Hill must have been just as bad. The boy refused to talk about it.

Just like with everything else.

I sighed heavily. Today was the day we were finally going to discuss the Ariados attack from only a few days prior. The dead Ferals had finally been dealt with - notably with extreme caution. The mutant pokemon were infected and had the potential to pass on the virus by bodily contact. The bodged bio-suits we tried to create might have seemed a little comical in hindsight. That being said, the giant beasts mysteriously disappeared one morning and their bodies were never found.

I have a feeling that a certain _somebody_ was likely instrumental in the organization of that stunt. Once you're infected then that's it - you can't get _more_ infected.

The farmhouse was quiet before sunrise. Its occupants, all members of The Chain, made the most of the lengthened winter nights. Walking down the hallway with caution, it was with great care that I climbed the old wooden stairs so as not to make a noise. The rooms upstairs were shared between the two boys, as well as a small office where we kept a lot of our written records. That, and a near-empty back room that we used as our private meeting hall. From what I can remember, those rooms used to have some pretty ancient furniture.

Orion was usually active this time of day, having transitioned into a fairly crepuscular lifestyle. I pushed his door open tentatively to check.

The hinges barely even whispered.

Inside it was much cooler than the warm farmhouse should have been. A chilly shiver ran up my spine and I shook the feeling off with a grimace. It was just the cold - but something didn't feel right somehow. The bed pushed against the far wall was only matched by a desk and stubby chest of draws. A quick scan over the meagre contents of room revealed one important fact.

Orion wasn't there! Instead, his bed was scruffled up with the covers apparently thrown onto the floor. It barely looked like the frame had even been slept in - the mattress as cold as the frigid air. Orion usually had some trouble sleeping, something which I assumed to be a result of his Umbreon instincts surfacing.

But one thing was certain. The window should **not** have been cast wide open.

'Ughhhh Orion…!' I mumbled to myself, already expecting the worst.

Going to shut the window revealed two things worthy of note.

Firstly, at some point it had rained in the night and the curtains had been swept out into the open air. The bottoms were soaked and near dripping with water. That in itself was beyond annoying, especially given how time consuming getting anything dry now was.

The second thing out of place (quite literally) was Orion curled up on the roof outside.

It would have been all too easy to miss the boy if it wasn't for his golden rings glowing in the dim pre-dawn night. A silhouette blending into the darkness, his outline was only marked by the dappling lights display which appeared to float over his sleeping form. Orion was curled up in a ball, his tail brought up and round in a way that didn't look physically possible.

The man's breath steamed faintly, indicating that he was breathing at the very least.

Upon looking closer, I could see the black fur that covering his arms was stood on end.

At this point I was a little thrown at what to do. But the man needed to get inside and get warm - and as quickly as possible.

A full moon offered the only other light in contrast to a faint yellow hue emitted by the Umbreon. My mind froze. Don't tell me he was drawn to it? False deductions floated through my awareness as I crept closer, not wanting to startle the man. I could only guess at a number of explanations for why Orion had decided to sleep out on the roof, yet I had difficulty in accepting my final conclusion.

'Oh...Ohh Orion…'

Tears formed swiftly in my eyes, and I felt more than a little afraid for my friend. Gently I called his name, hoping to wake him.

'Orion…?'

It was getting worse. Something needed to be done. Yes, Orion was fully entitled to be a little off-colour with what had happened recently. Nearly dying can do that to a person. But this was beyond worrying. He was being so...so Umbreon like! Jane and Insley had explained to me that Orion had used a Pokemon move when protecting Fort Haste. I still had my doubts. Until now that was. What didn't help was that Insley had completed a dare to see if Orion noticed the Poke-chow mixed in with his breakfast yesterday. Blink twice and that was an over-sized Pokémon curled up on the old kitchen roof. An Umbreon sleeping under the light of the moon.

Cautiously, I climbed out of the window.

My bare feet touched down on the gently-sloping felt. Tiptoeing both to stay silent and because my toes were frickin' freezing, I made my way across the kitchen roof. The building extension was loosely covered in moss and a thick grime that was slick after a night of rain. Cool air tickled at my nose.

Bending down besides the boy, I placed a hand down to steady myself.

Orion's hair was softer than it should have been, like thick black fur. I tickled an ear hoping for a response. I didn't have to wait long. The young man's eyes worked the way open slowly, struggling to focus. Another blink and his pupils had narrowed into tight slits, his irises a haunting blood-red in the low light. All pity quickly evaporated into fear as the man picked himself up, lips stiffening as he began to bear his teeth.

'Orion?' I backed off, my hands sinking into the damp spongy moss. 'It's me,Orion.' My voice quivered.

Fear gripped me as the man froze, studying me coldly.

The world hung in the balance and for a second I could see the reflection of a terrified teenager. At that very moment Orion shook, ruffling his green jacket like some kind of job. Jumping at the sudden motion, I wasn't prepared for the the disorientated wide-eyed gaze. Orion's previously sinister expression had evaporated to leave a startled frown. I caught my breath, hesitant to make a sound or even move encase the boy flipped again.

Filling my lungs in a deliberate manner, I tried to still my frantically beating heart.

'Are…Are you ok Orion?'

The Umbreon just stared back at me in confusion, his head tilting every so slightly as he fixed me with a sold gaze.

'Uh…Orion?'

I didn't know if he was ignoring me or was somehow sleepwalking. His ears perked up a little at my voice, his black-tipped nose twitching as if sniffing at the cold predawn air. Slowly uncurling himself, he pushing himself up into a more natural seated position. One side of his body was covered in thin coat of black muck and grime. I cursed softly to myself. Something wasn't right here.

'Fenn…?'

Orion rubbed at his eyes with the back of his hand. In a way, it looked more like he was cleaning himself with a paw. Blink twice and the image was gone.

'Fenn?' He whined again, as if uncertain who I was. His ears were pulled back, puppy dog eyes widening to form two black saucers in a sea of red.

'Yeah, it's me Orion.' I verified softly, 'Are you ok to get off the roof?'

For a long moment we simply sat watching each other. A gust of wind blew across the moonlit sky and it was then that I realized I was properly shivering. It was too cold to be outside on morning's like this - even if Orion seemed content in just a shirt and some thin pajama shorts. The boy was seemingly unaffected by the chill.

Ever so slowly he picked himself up and stretched - but in a way that he pushed his hands across the roof. Arching his back, I was lost for words at the animalistic display. A long black tail wagged in the air briefly, trailing golden light.

Trying to ignore what I had just seen, I spoke in a soothing voice.

'Back inside then Orion?'

He nodded, picking himself up and standing on two feet. Given his current behaviour, it wouldn't have shocked me if he'd crawled back on all fours. However, Orion did bounce along on the tips of his toes making his feet look more like hocks than anything human. In a surprisingly agile maneuver, the man clambered back through the window with ease. I was nowhere near as elegant and trod carefully on the slippy roof. With a hand from Orion, I tumbled back through the window. It was only once we were both inside of the room that I could finally pull myself together.

With a huff, I pulled the curtains down off the rail and bundled them up ungracefully. Tugging the window shut firmly, it was only then that I let my frustration show.

'What the hell were you doing Orion!? What...what even was that?'

I pulled at my hair, frustrated by the lack of a response.

'What the hell is going on with you? Is this normal? Should I be worried?'

He stood a little sheepishly, his hands clasped together awkwardly and his ears drawn back against his scalp. For a brief moment it felt like I was scolding a child. Screwing my face up, I tried to decide whether I should be reprimanding that man or providing some sort of psychological help. Probably the latter. Orion himself barely seemed aware of what was going on.

He blinked, red eyes wider than they should have been.

'I'm sorry Fenn. It's…' He stopped, fumbling with his fingers as he stared at the floor. His long Umbreon tail hung limply as he scraped at the floorboards with grimy toes. 'Sometimes I get…'

Orion trailed off, standing there with his rings glowing faintly. They provided the only light within the small room.

Skinny, a little pale, and with a mop of black hair - Orion might have once been an average looking guy. He was shivering now, averting his gaze as if to ignore what was becoming an increasingly demoralizing situation. Words kept reaching the tip of my tongue but made it no further. Nothing I could think of was worth saying, least of all because I knew that somehow this wasn't his fault. Why should I rebuke the half-Umbreon for doing something he was obviously struggling to control himself? I was torn between holding onto the tirade or simply accepting my folly.

Is this what the virus did to people? Is this what would happen to Megan?

At last I crumbled, all prior anger extinguishing in a heartbeat.

'Let's just get you cleaned up shall we?' My voice came out as a whisper.

Orion nodded, already trying to avoid scratching off the dirt and moss from his arms. I'd never seen him behave this way before. I hadn't yet grasped just how much it scared me. The one man that seemed capable of providing an answer to any problem was now behaving like a cornered animal. How can you grasp that? Scratching at the floorboards with a toe, I took a deep breath.

'Did you want to talk about what's going on?

It was a question I'd asked many times, and not once had I ever got a response. The best answer I'd been gifted with was a scowl. In all fairness, I didn't expect anything this time. It just seemed the right thing to do - to allow him the opportunity to share some of his problems. But knowing how stubborn Orion could be, I knew forcing such a conversation on him wasn't the right thing to do. In fact, I'd nearly turned away towards the door when I realized he was staring at me.

His eyes softened, and it was like mask was being peeled from his face. Orion's body visibly relaxed, and once again the man I knew was standing there. It was the eyes that gave it away. The mindlessness from before was slowly fading.

'You know...Um…' He stuttered, either from his teeth chattering or the strain to at last reveal his inner turmoil.

'I'm reverting back into an Umbreon.' Orion spoke woodenly, pulling a grimace. 'Not physically, just mentally…at least bree hope so. I'm struggling to control it.' He added the latter quickly as if afraid of admitting the fact to himself. 'After what happened and...and protecting you. It's…'

I'd snorted at his first comment but was already feeling bad about the outburst.

Now the moment had arrived I just felt awkward.

'I...I understand.' I lied, 'Should I be worried?'

Orion didn't look at me.

'I don't know.' He whispered as if to himself, 'I don't know what's happening. I never know it just...it just happens.' He muttered bitterly. How long had this been going on with or without me aware of it?

'I'm sorry I made a mess Fenn but...well…'

He stuttered again, obviously struggling to put his emotions into words.

'Umbreon's like the moon and I guess... no, I mean ... bree, why can't eon explain it?' Orion grimaced and scratched at his forehead with his hands, his ears flat against his head.

For some reason I wanted to shout at him. Yes he'd been rolling in muck and nearly frozen to death but, now these feeling of malice was just that - malice. After all this time, all I wanted was the man to open up to me. But now I didn't know what to do! Should I comfort him? Should I just agree but give him his personal space? Blind frustration and hatred for something you don't understand just hurts everyone involved. Maybe Berry Hill was the original trigger?

It was at this point that I realised just how poorly I knew Orion.

I couldn't relate to the half-Umbreon stood in front of me. It was almost as if I couldn't communicate with him like I could with the others. Yes, we talked and laughed but with Orion it always felt different. He never joked the same way or seemed to enjoy the same small things in life. He'd always been a great friend and we were pretty much indebted to him one way or another. But casting those illusions beside, I understood that Orion had always kept his distance. There had always been a great pain behind those eyes - like he was at odds with himself. Who was this man. Why did he save our lives? Why was he putting himself through all of this?

Orion settled down into normality, tugging at the collar of his shirt which was dripping water on the floorboards.

'Let's get cleaned up.' I reiterated, 'And we can talk more later once you're feeling better?'

Orion nodded, his large ears flopping back and forth in a slightly comic fashion. He was still giving the puppy dog eyes.

'And next time, maybe stay in the warm and keep the curtains dry?'

Orion nodded slowly, his eyes downcast.

I'd like to say that the rest of the day went without a hitch - but it really didn't. Sneaking to the shower in the darkness wasn't nearly as exhilarating that I thought it would be, what with sentries and all. Neither of us wanted to explain why Orion looked like he'd had a mud bath. Using the showers this early in the morning meant that no warm water had been prepared. Instead, I resorted to getting a couple of buckets from the borehole. It was frigid to the touch but Orion didn't seem to mind. Just carrying the steel buckets made my hands shiver.

Closer to dawn and the ground froze over, causing a localised inversion in air temperature and with it a thin fog. Fort Haste was encompassed in the icy embrace. At least we were both warmly dressed by the time that the Hasties started to wake. With nothing else to do, both of us chipped in on getting the kitchens up to speed prior to breakfast. The Foodhall kicked into action lazily, fires prodded into an inferno, and the Rayburns turned up to full heat. The speckling of bunting within the steel barn hung limp without a light wind to ruffle the fabric.

Insley had managed to drag herself out of bed, dress, and was now sat alone at one of the squat tables. Bundled up in a large feather coat, it was apparent that she was drafting out a plan for today's meals - as well as a timetable for how everything would be organised. Along with most of the Chain, Insley had a natural talent for project management. She appeared deep in thought, chewing on the end of her pencil.

Casting a quick glance over my shoulder, I saw Insley was in fact formatting the sessions for the whole of Fort Haste. I'd been put down for fletching for most of the morning, whilst Orion had archery for two afternoon sessions.

He enjoyed that - maybe it would perk him up a little.

'Do you need any help with anything this morning?' I asked, pulling out a seat to land next to the girl. Beth and James had been on shift this morning and they had everything under control. As well as our fair share in cursing and other complaints that waking up before six does to a teenager.

Breakfast went smoothly, mostly consisting of the infamous 'hasty porridge' and other assorted fruits and things, most of which had been sourced from a tin and separated into portions a few times smaller than initially recommended. These were plated up with startling skill, carted out, and served to the children within a few minutes. Beat that for efficiency!

As far as In knew, both Bass and Insley had teamed up (with some other interested kids) to work out a way to preserve food. This time next year and (hopefully) we'd be living off what we could produce - or what we could harvest from the surrounding acres of untended farmland. The main issue was that everything seemed to fruit in late summer - meaning our supplies had to last not only through winter but spring as well.

Both Orion and I had our usual spots at the head table reserved for the Chain. Orion had got into his seat awkwardly, shifting his tail out of the way into a more comfortable position. I had to pretend I was studying the table cloth when he noticed me looking. A small flush crept up his face as I tried to comfort him with a small smile. Most likely he was embarrassed and probably still ashamed from this morning. I couldn't blame him, just thank God that it was this morning. If somebody had seen what happened!? Maybe Orion knew how to use confuse ray. I'd read (back when schools still existed) of how it could cause a memory-block if used correctly.

'How's it going?' Mike plonked himself down solidly, scratching at his thick hair. It took a moment to rearrange his oversized coat so he could fit in his seat, the jacket making him look like he was still wrapped up in a duvet. Mike had always been an oddly likable character in Fort Haste, even as he cast a critical eye across the round table.

'It's a bit early.' Orion rubbed his hands together to warm pale fingers, 'Cold too.'

The leaders were trying to keep their wary-eyed children out of trouble around the various tables. Some had decided they didn't want to be ordered in age groups, shuffling between the square tables in something which was quickly becoming a game. Nobody was particularly angry, but it was quickly becoming apparent the disruption was stopping food carts from being trollied out. Once the kids realised that fact, they were sat back down in their seats as quickly as you could shout first-cart! Many of the year-leaders were girls, though to be fair there were slightly more girls than boys at Fort Haste anyways.

I should probably explain myself a little more. Where you'd have year-groups in school, we basically acted in the same way. Anyone over the age of around 16, which constituted around a fifth of Hasties, took the roles of teachers. These teenagers were supposed to be older and more responsible - not to mention having the patience of saints.

With food on the way, noise levels increased exponentially.

'The leaves fell earlier this year though. We're in for a long winter.' Orion swiveled round in his chair slightly in order to face Mike. That was no mean feet, given the curvature of the table. Orion's usual seat was in the very back corner of the shed, meaning you could see just about everything that was going on in the barn. Some meals the young man simply sat in silence and stared across the room. It was as if he was standing sentinel.

'There is that…' Mike agreed, 'long and mild is fine. I just hope it doesn't get much colder.'

'We're getting harsh frosts here.' Orion pointed out.

Mike just nodded, turning to greet the other members of the table. Bass didn't even look like she was awake. Some mornings she seemed to sleepwalk to the table, sit in a half unconscious, and only wake when the scent of food was wafted before her nose. Jane came in slightly late again, but nobody really cared. All in all, it was a typical morning at Fort Haste. Almost as if this mishap this morning never happened at all.

Only after first-cart had been around, and the Foodhall reached a merry level of chatter, did I speak.

'What did we have planned to talk over in the meeting?' I asked over a spoonful of steaming porridge, 'I mean, is there much confidential stuff that needs mentioning? If not, it might be worth just running through the general gist of things here?'

It took the others a while to answer. Insley just shrugged, she'd nearly finished her porridge already and I struggled to work out how she ate so quickly. It was like the gruel never even touched her lips.

'I'd like to know what happened to those spiders…' Mike said, chewing at a hot mouthful of oats. He quickly downed a cup of water before wiping his mouth with the back of a hand.

'Agreed' Bass added, leaning back on her chair. I almost missed the cheeky glare that she gave Orion, 'Nor have we worked out why they attacked in the first place.'

Bass yawned loudly as if to emphasize her point.

Orion seemed unfazed by the underhanded comments. Placing down his spoon, he bent down to pick something out from underneath the table.

'I have something to show you all actually.' He spoke quietly, indicating that this was not something to be shared around the Foodhall. His whisper had the joint effect of stopping the Chain. Even Insley stopped scraping the remains from her bowl. All eyes were on Orion and I gave a quick glance around the foodhall to make sure that other tables weren't watching on in interest.

With a frown, I watched Orion place something down on the stained tablecloth.

An awkward silence quickly developed. All at once we all tried to work out what he was getting at. I saw Bass make eye contact with Jane with a frown, the doctor only offering a small shrug. Trying to ignore my own doubts at the boy's sanity, I returned my focus back to the animal.

'Uh…you do realise that's just a stick?' Jane commented.

Mike chuckled and I must admit, I did to. 'Does a game of fetch fit into your sessions today then. Maybe we should be shouting that when the archers collect their arrows?' He added.

Orion reddened slightly before attempting to explain the meaning behind the small stake.

'Let's just say that I'm not at risk from the virus like you guys are. So I had a good look over the Ferals. They all had something in common.' He waved at the mangled branch on the table, 'Each one had a stick skewered into their stomachs.'

Insley was sucking the residue of porridge off her spoon before clearing her throat,

'So you're saying someone stuck some sticks through some spiders to drive them crazy and attack us?'

Orion shrugged, itching at an ear. So much so that I carefully pulled his hand away to prevent him drawing any more unnecessary attention to his Umbreon features. He gave me a shallow glare for that but said nothing. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed he'd barely even touched his breakfast. A bubble of unease rose in my lung but just as I was about to speak, Mike interrupted.

'But if these creatures were in pain, why would they attack? Surely they'd want to try and help themselves and get the stakes out rather than running towards camp…? It ain't right.' The boy paused in thought, his finger fiddling with a screw plucked from a jacket pocket. 'Where abouts was this stake placed?' Mike asked.

Orion adjusted his shirt collar slightly,

'I think it was their stomachs, it seemed to be around that area…I'm not sure about spider anatomy.'

'Couldn't have been hunger then?'

Bass's small voice was outcompeted by the first bell. Most of the Chain jumped at the sudden noise. The bell marked the start of the day and the theoretical halftime for breakfast. More importantly, it marked a key sentry shift during which the dayguard replaced the nightgaurd. That meant a huge grumble-fest for the majority of kids which were now technically on duty. Many tried to gulp down as much food as possible before setting out into the cold.

'Has anybody else got much to discuss in the meeting then?' I asked during the lull. 'Apart from skewered Ferals?'

Jane and Insley shook their heads, though Mike hesitantly offered a topic,

'I wanted to talk over the sewage idea we had last time. I've got some designs of something to put in next spring if we wanted to go over them?'

I paused, considering the thought.

'I think you and Orion can look over those together if you want. I doubt that needs all of us. Whilst you're at it you can have a look at the cladding designs again. It might be worth starting to construct more gabions and scaffolding before it gets too icy. '

The two men's grins grew wider with each passing moment.. I rolled my eyes, thankful for Bass' interruption

'Isn't Kim supposed to be dropping by today? I remember her saying she'd be here whether or not she found a transformer.' The youngest member of the Chain adjusted her neck scarf, glancing in my direction. Insley had beaten her too it, offering a toothy grin as she leant back in her chair.

'I didn't know that was today.' The girl didn't break eye contact.

'Come on!' I huffed, 'Me and Kim are fine. We just...have our differences.'

'Well I'll keep an eye out for her.' Orion chirped up.

'Great.' I shot back quickly, trying to shuffle the conversation onwards. I had to raise my voice above the clatter of the Foodhall as the shift change meant kids were coming in and out of the barn en masse. 'So, any other topics?'

Bass was frowning, thinking over an idea,

'Well.' She rubbed at her nose, 'I wanted to go over the idea of having some kind of festival towards the end of the winter. I think it would give the kids something to look forward to and prepare for. It'll help to keep us all occupied stuck inside this time of year.'

Orion's ears perked up, but it was Mike that spoke up,

'I'm liking the sound of that. Have a winter-come-spring feast thingy.'

Insley couldn't resist breaking the bubble. Leant back in her chair, she pulled a spoon out of her mouth and waved it our direction.

'And what are supplies like for something like that? What scale will this thing be?' She dropped her spoon back in her bowl with frustration at the combination of lack of food on both timescales. 'It's a nice idea but not reasonable. A party? Yes. But not a feast.

'We have enough.'

Orion spoke flatly, but with such an air of confidence that the others let the subject drop. Apart from Insley that was.

'And who's in charge of managing our food stocks? It's going to be a struggle to pull through anyway. Let alone throwing a wasteful feast at the end of it all?' In truth. Insley _was_ in charge of the kitchens and so it was _her_ problem to worry about.

Orion sighed heavily, crossing his arms.

'We'll make it work. And if not, I'm sure we can trade some stuff off to Kim. We pretty much have limitless access to those warehouses she has waiting for us. Maybe she's stockpiled with food. If not, well those guys are Berry Hill have more than enough. We'll invite them along.'

Insley just snorted but didn't say much else.

'We'll I make a point of asking Kim.' Mike spoke solidly, though to my ears it sounded a little tentative. Although he could be a little loud-mouthed at times, Mike wasn't one for confrontations. Insley, however, loved the drama.

'You ok with that Fenn?' Orion asked.

At this point I was scanning the room again. The Foodhall was still in a tumult, through the nightguard were settling down with their breakfast slop. Noise covered our chatter on something which really should have been private. Those on kitchen duty had the next few carts ready for the new kids coming in. Beth and James hadn't bothered waiting however, and sat at their own table eating away. Sometimes I did worry about those two.

It was then that I noticed Orion's stare.

'Uh…Yes!'

Those shifting eyes again. He was starting to zone out again. A deeper red colouration was unquestionably working its way towards his pupils. Blink and it was gone.

'Cool.' The boy pushed himself up from the table. 'Well let's get to it.'

Second bell didn't come much later and we all set out to do our various jobs.

It was easier to keep warm when you were busying yourself with work. I stayed behind in the Foodhall to help clean up for a while before heading back to the house slowly. Both Bass and Insley had morning sessions, leaving the farmhouse a void. Heading up the stairs, I paused for a long time at Orion's door before moving on. It was with a sigh that I pushed open the study door and plonked myself down inside. It seemed unlikely we were going to have a Chain meeting today, so I had more time to catch up on admin.

Paperwork used to be bad back in the day where I struggled to learn how to use computerized spreadsheets. Now everything was done on paper, the workload was unimaginable. Records were kept on everything and summary documents written up for each week on the expenditure of resources. We tried to keep a tab on everything from food eaten to crayons snapped. The place was the wet dream of some strange efficiency perfectionist, something I definitely wasn't. I admit, sometimes I enjoyed it. But today I wasn't feeling it one bit.

In the end I just sat down and got on with the chore. That's what being a Hastie was about. You just had to grit your teeth and roll up your sleeves. It was me versus a few hours of paperwork. How hard could it be? Music would have been a big help and so would electricity for that matter. We could only pray that Kim had sorted out a transformer to link solar panels onto our downscaled electric grid. The blue cells had been bolted onto the old poultry houses but were running at the wrong current to actually power anything.

Hopefully the solo tomboy had found what we needed. More likely, she'd been scavenging anything of value and filling the town's industrial estate with the goods. Kim was the only person we knew of, beyond Berry Hill, that was still alive. Then again, it would take a lot to kill of the teenager. She was a willful as they came.

Already I was dreaming of having a cd player again.

I went to grab some fresh air for a break. It had warmed up during the few hours I'd been locked away counting up tally tables. The sun had climbed it's ladder into the heavens and the air was only chilly instead of face-freezing. Clouds whistled across the sky to be torn apart by the wind. The world hung on the edge of the plummet into winter. There was no lunch today, so I busied myself with a short walk up onto the embankment to stare out at the world beyond the palisade.

I heard the low rumble just before the whistle called.

A few minutes later the fact was undeniable - Kim had arrived. She knew the best route to the main gate but parked out on the road to the east of camp anyways. The flatbed pickup truck looked cleaner than it usually did from this distance, the doors slamming as two people got out. I squinted, double checking. Definitely two people. Not one. Rubbing at me eyes didn't change the truth of the matter. Kim appeared to be walking towards Fort Haste with somebody else obscured in a pale brown hoodie.

Whoever was on duty on the gate blew out a short whistle call.

 ***…two…approaching…***

I chuckled. Yeah no shit. Zipping my coat up to fight the cold, I wiggled my toes in my shoes. Ignoring the stressful bubble of apprehension building in my chest, I headed down towards the main gate. There was a nervous energy to me stride as I tried to stop myself fidgeting. But two people?!

Max was on duty, hands stuck in his pockets.

'You can open the gates now.' I told him a little sternly.

The kid jumped, giving me a wild look a sudden reminder that I had in fact snuck up on the teenager. Working the weighted pulley system, yet another brainchild of the Mike-Orion team, the thick wooden boards swung open with a groan. The locking bar slid out of place and I helped catch one and lead it against the grassed embankment with a pant.

I brushed my fringe from out of my eyes.

Kim came through the door a little gingerly, her dark hazel eyes scanning intently before they finally fell on me. A taunting, cheeky grin appeared on her face as she gave me a small wave. Adjusting her backpack, she gestured for her companion to follow her through the gates.

'Well Fenn! It's good to see you eh?'

I fought the urge to disagree with that comment. No. It wasn't good to see you Kim. I wanted Orion or somebody to be out here to meet you. I just ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Although those thoughts went through my mind, I forced myself to smile. Kim's accent was clearly from the north and was much broader than the average Hastie.

'Hi Kim. It's good to see you made it here in once piece.' I spoke politely and in a manner that was a bit forced.

'And with a guest too as well.' Kim didn't seem bothered by my constrained greeting. 'Said he might be interested in joinin' ya.'

Kim, one of the older survivors who was nearly seventeen, waved a hand haphazardly at the boy by her side. He was relatively short, clad in a worn tan-brown hoodie which hung loosely from his frame. It didn't seem like enough clothing given the weather. Bright green eyes shone from his face and I caught my breath. There was something strange in that gaze, and his body posture made it look like he was hiding something.

Maybe I was just being paranoid.

'Ah…Nice to meet you.' I adjusted the raincoat around my shoulders, 'Did you both want to come on in and get a drink of something? Hot drinks maybe?

The giant gate closed behind them with a bang. Max tied off the pulley ropes and hauled the oak bar back into place. Not much entered Fort Haste - or left for that matter.

'Eh. I'll just head on up. If you're not minding me that is. I could do with a chat with Mike if he's about. No transformer sorry, but I've got enough copper to try and make one. Just hope I don't go blowing anything up right? Ha. I'm guessing Orion will be around to talk to as well? And that kid Haley for that matter. She was pretty good with Mike's old tools. If you know what I mean.' She added with a brazen grin.

To be honest, I wasn't entirely sure what she was implying. Kim didn't seem like the most sane of people. To be living on your own in this new world was enough to drive anyone insane. Hell, Fort Haste felt isolated and we had couple hundred of kids for company. Yet each time we'd offered her to become a Hastie, the teenager had flatly refused. Perhaps she was the lone wolf type. Either that or plain crazy. Orion once said she had a wild soul, so that summed her up pretty well too.

Kim wore her hair short, pulled back into a woolen hat although stray hairs still escaped. Oddly enough, some of them had a pinkish tint making me question if the girl had tried to die her hair. Kim seemed the type to spray her hair lavender. A leather jacket consisted of most of her clothing, with some ripped jeans keeping her legs warm above some shiny black, steel toe-capped work boots. A bright pink backpack looked heavy slung across a shoulder, the bottom oil stained and dirt trodden.

'I'm a'guessing that it's all left as it was before? My stuff?'

I nodded. Kim was the type of person that did things her own way. Compromise was something unknown to her. You could get away with it now, especially when you had only yourself for company. But it was her bullish attitude that grated on me. It would be a lie to say that I liked Kim. I'm sure she was a nice person an all, but not my type. Her and Mike, however, were like two peas in a pod when they got stuck in with something. Orion seemed to like her too.

Kim only got on well with people she respected. It was a feeling she used sparingly.

'Nobody's touched anything Kim. Mike should be up there now and…Orion's busy at the moment. I guess you can have a catch up this afternoon. He's teaching archery for a couple of periods.'

The girl nodded, 'Bows and arrows against the lightning eh?'

That was followed by a smug grin before, almost as an afterthought, she pretty much pushed the boy stood next to her into the conversation. Speaking in a horse which felt a little forced, I felt a bit sorry for the boy who was obviously very nervous.

'This 'ere is Matt. He stumbled upon me a few days ago and was interested in coming here. I said I'd bring him along with me.' Kim flashed the boy one of her toothy grins, 'Him and Orion are going to get on swell.'

'Welcome to Fort Haste Matt.' I offered a comforting smile, going to shake his hand. Matt didn't seem to want to take his hands out of his pockets. A little confused, Kim stepped in and yanked one of the boy's arms with surprising force.

'Come on Matt. They're going to find out anyway.'

Gingerly, Matt apologized under his breath and stuck his hand out. I shook it gently, holding his palm in mine for a brief moment. That was all it took to feel the fur and beginnings of soft pads under my fingers. Freezing, I lifted my eyes to find Matt averting his gaze. It was clear that the boy didn't want to make a big deal about the fact he had brown furred paw-like hands.

'Yeah. I know.' He muttered, 'I'm a freak.'

'Uh…' I struggled for words.

'I'll leave you two to it.' Kim said loudly, turning on her heel. 'See you around Fennie.'

She was already off, walking up to the workshop whilst mocking a salute behind her. Trying not to screw up my face, I forced out a deep breath and returned my attention to the newest member of Fort Haste. Kim knew how to annoy me and I reminded myself to rise above her petty games.

'Sorry about Kim.' I apologized to the boy. 'She's not everyone's cup of tea.'

'You can say that again.' Matt agreed softly, 'I hope I'm not intruding. Kim spoke a lot about this place and...well...I haven't really seen anyone around for a while. Apart from Kim that is.'

The teenager spoke quickly, behaving skittishly as he clearly surveyed the collection of barns behind us.

He had his hands stuck in the pocket on the front of his large hoodie. My eyes picked out faded white writing across the front. Bold letters announced that it was one of the league hoodies - like the "I love Indigo Plateau" shirts you used to see tourists wear. He must have been a battling enthusiast at some point, or maybe even a trainer.

'She's not everyone's cup of tea. Talking of tea...you want to sit down with a drink of something? We can have a chat and I'll show you round and introduce you to Orion.'

'He's the Umbreon right?' His eyes glowed with a hint of intrigue.

I nodded, 'Yeah. Don't worry. We don't really care much about...well…' I struggled to find the right word before giving up. 'You know what I mean. You're welcome here. The more the merrier. Nice hoodie by the way.'

Matt just smiled, naturally resorting to a awkward silence that I put down to nerves. I myself wasn't any good as starting small talk so I didn't try, inviting him over towards the Foodhall where undoubtedly there would be a kettle on the boil. The teenager's emerald eyes were wide as he looked around the small farmstead. Everybody was in lessons so it was eerily quiet as we crossed the yard.

Entering the Foodhall quickly, I almost flattened Bass who was just as hastily making her way out.

'Sorry Bass! Didn't know you were there.'

'It's fine. I…'

It was then that she spotted Matt stood in the doorway behind me.

'You have a visitor. I guess Kim has just arrived then?'

'Yes. This is Matt.' I ushered the boy in after me, stripping off my coat and throwing it over the back of a chair. 'Kim's just got here and it straight over to see Mike. Me and Matt were going to sit down for a chat if you wanted to join in with the grand tour after?'

Bass fiddled with the zipper on her coat before running a hand through her dark hair.

'I was just heading over to help out with the under-seven's art class. Can't do the tour but I can grab a couple mugs of tea if you want?'

'You're a star Bass.' I thanked her, turning back to Matt.

'Uh…yeah this is Bass. You'll be seeing a lot of her round.'

'Hi.'

The boy had a quiet voice and I offered him a quick smile to try and make the situation a little less intimidating. Bass slipped out silently and I plonked myself down onto a chair. Matt followed suit, tugging his hoodie around him and pulling at the fabric.

'You warm enough? We've got more coats if you want one.'

'It's not that its...uh. Well I've got a few Pokemon features you know. I didn't want to...like scare anyone or anything.' Matt dropped his bag to the floor.

'Honestly Matt. It's fine. It's up to you but we don't mind at all.'

In fact, I was a little intrigued to find out his appearance.

Matt sat with his back peculiarly straight, unsure what to do with his hands. Leaning back in my chair, I folded my arms and watched the boy out of the corner of my eye. In part, I was dreaming up Matt's reaction when he saw Orion - what with his glowing tail and ears. Our leader's appearance could be a little unusual at the best of times.

Matt sat down awkwardly, shifting in his seat for a long while in a way that was unusual yet somehow familiar. He still had his hood up and I took a moment to scan my eyes over him. The teenager perched on the edge of his seat, back oddly straight.

'I…I'm…' He stumbled over words and I wondered if he truly was this shy. 'Uh…Well. Sooner or later right?'

It was with a slow but measured movement that he pulled his hood down slowly, revealing his face. At first I was confused at what was going on. But it was when his ears popped out from his short-cut hair that I pieced the clues together.

Matt had two fluffy tan coloured ears that stuck out cutely from the top of his head. These faded to a olivine green colour, perking up as he itched at his neck awkwardly. A bit of tan fur could be seen as he adjusted his shirt collar, which explained how just a thin hoodie had kept him warm. The tips of his ears were disturbingly leaf-like, matching the flecks of green in his otherwise golden-brown hair. Following the reveal, Matt locked eyes with me as if expecting some kind of reaction.

It was that I was unimpressed, more that I was trying to feign the opposite.

'You're not grossed out?'

I chuckled, 'It's nothing to be embarrassed about Matt. It's not like you look scary or anything. The opposite actually.' I added with a smile.

He choked,'You're not even surprised? This is supposed to be some freaky shite.'

'No, _Ferals_ are freaky shite' emphasizing the feral part.

'You mean those behemoths?' The boy recoiled upon saying the last part. 'But having...having _these-_ ' he grabbed both of his ears and pulled them down slightly before releasing them '- are completely normal?'

'Uh…well'

I trailed off. How was I going to explain this? When I first met Orion all that time ago, he seemed to have come to terms with his changes. Or at least, he didn't give a damn about what other people thought about them. The boy sat in front of me seemed different though. Matt's eyes held a weariness to them. Pain came from hiding his identity.

'We understand what the virus can do.' I explained slowly, seeing Bass return from the kitchens with two mugs. 'It's not your fault. Hell, you should see Orion. It's nothing to be worried about. In fact our doctor is quite experienced dealing with morphs, you'll meet Jane later. And after that there's Orion of course.'

I avoided bringing up Megan. Given her age and difficulties fitting in already as a nerdy child, I didn't want to turn her whole life completely upside down. Not was it clear if there had been any appearance of more pokemon features besides a small patch of fur.

Bass came over quietly, put the two mugs down, and waved a quick farewell. It was clear that she didn't want to interrupt the conversation, through her eyes remained fixed on Matt's ears for sometime. I could only hope my claims were true. Hastie's didn't mind Orion but just how far did that distinterst go?

It was only then that I identified what Matt was hinting at.

'Just because you've got some Pokemon features doesn't mean you can't stay here. Kim hinted that you were interested…? I don't think Bass even noticed then…And feel free to adjust your tail or anything. I've heard that it can be uncomfortable at times.'

Matt thanked me, doing just that. nodded. A quick glance and for a moment I gawked as the giant leaf poking out from the side of the chair. It was a while before either of us spoke. It was nice to simply hear the hustle and bustle of Fort Haste in the background.

'So…This is Fort Haste?' Matt asked softly following the silence.

I chuckled inwardly, wishing I could see the farmstead with fresh eyes. I could still remember the elation when we finally finished turning the fort into something habitable. We'd built ourselves a true home after the end of the world - a home that was a ramshackle as they came.

'Sure is. I can show you round if you'd like?'

Matt nodded and lent forward to grab his drink. I couldn't help but stare at his hands and the fine coat of fur that covered them. Deep chocolate coloured hair gave them a fuzzy appearance that coated everything but his palms. These seemed oddly toughed, almost like a dark leather. Without being rude, I would have pretty much called them paws. I wondered if his feet told the same story.

I never once claimed to be a social butterfly. The newcomer had to start the conversation as he hugged the warmth of the beverage to his stomach.

'Where are you all from?' Matt asked quietly, 'I haven't seen anyone around except for Kim, and I met her just a few days ago. And now here as well. How many people are there here?'

Matt's pale emerald eyes seemed to jitter around the room.

'We're all local. Most of us were from the town you stayed in last night. They set up a quarantine zone soon after the outbreak. That failed and everybody that survived ended up here. So we're all from Kanto pretty much. There's about a hundred and seventy three in total. Four with you now.'

Matt nodded, his ears bouncing slightly. Green flecks spotted his short fringe.

'And you?' I asked gently. Generally our own histories was a soft topic, but I could see Matt wanted to talk about it. Or maybe he didn't - but felt like he should.

At first I didn't think Matt would answer that. He seemed a little unsure of the fact himself.

'I used to be a trainer.'

He spoke shortly, eyes darting down to stare into his drink. I wasn't sure whether to push the topic any further. Matt squirmed a little, reminding me very much of Orion when I tried to get information out of him. So instead I switched our conversation onto little things. Choosing safe topics anyone can talk about without worry, we discussed the weather and Beedrill honey of all things. Drinking our hot drinks slowly (I was trying to savour it as much as possible) it was only when Matt had finished his tea that I stood up.

'Did you want to have a look around camp then?' I asked.

He nodded and it was then that I truly saw just how shy he was. It was one thing revealing your appearance to one person. Something else entirely parading yourself around you future home. I wondered if the stutter in his words was something he always had. Perhaps nerves were kicking in again.

'That would be great.'

Matt went to down his drink, forgetting it was still rather hot. Spluttering out a find mist of warm tea, he wiped at his mouth before grinning sheepishly. I laughed before I could stop myself. This only made the teenager blush further. Whoever he was, Matt seemed like a nice guy.

A few minutes later and I kicked off the tour of Fort Haste. With my wellies squelching through the red iron-rich Kanto mud, I was thankful that Matt wore equally sturdy walking boots. The worn-out shoes were more than a little battered, giving the impression that they were well lived in. It's surprising what you can tell about a person from small things like that. If anything, it meant he'd been travelling for a long time.

Partially to my request, Matt accepted the coat I offered from our pile of spares.

With great difficulty I drew my attention and my eyes away from the boy as he shouldered on the jacket and adjusted his tail out from underneath it. Unlike Orion who could almost get away with his appearance - let's just say that Matt had a leaf poking out of his butt. That wasn't something easily missed. It was clear that the Pokemon features were shared with a grass-type, though I racked my brains to think which one. The name was on the top of my tongue. Earth brown paws and a green leafy tail?

During the short tour, we worked our way around the farmstead and up onto the embankment. I'd pointed out where everything was and all he needed to know, from the toilet block to the accommodation area. At the back of my mind I noted it would be worth having Matt stay in the farmhouse for now. The teenager followed behind me quietly, gazing around the small farm with what appeared to be muted interest. He was fascinated by the Lee slopes and the defences in place there - during which I emphasized how safe we should all be here. After that I pointed out the lower dormitories (old cattle sheds) and our storage right up in the rows of poultry sheds.

We didn't meet many kids hanging around. Those we did were on errands and kept moving, as shy of the newcomer as he was of them. Most of the Hasties were concentrated in the K'field practicing field skills. The rest were in the central complex. This consisted of the Foodhall and two neighbouring barns which had been partitioned off to form a rough hospital, and a couple of down-rooms. When designing Fort Haste, Orion had been keen to keep as many of the buildings open. Straw bales had been stacked round the walls for insulation this time of year.

Matt seemed to take this all in with a nod, asking a couple of questions about the communal facilities.

After a few seconds considering whether it was the right things to do, I finally led the boy towards the K'field. Crossing under the shadow of the Keep, Matt stopped to stare up at the seventy-foot structure. It was beautiful in it's own eccentric way - a hodgepodge of stacked bales, long wooden beams, and tarp. Beyond the gabion wall was the K'field.

My feet caught at the clods and the short grass.

'Fire!'

That must have been Jeff. Only his voice could carry like that.

The teenager was stood with Orion, his rainbow scarf wrapped tightly around his neck. To the side was a long row of kids. Each had a bow in their hands with an equally long row of targets around sixty feet away. All of them were feathered with shafts. A few arrows littered the ground around coloured circles from near misses.

'Collect!' It was Orion's turn to shout, though Jeff yelled 'FETCH!' much to the amusement of the kids.

In fact, I was laughing too. Matt caught my eye but all I could offer was a shrug.

As one mass the kids walked slowly over the targets to collect their individual arrows. It was during this time that Orion turned around at the sound of our footsteps. His ears perked up at seeing the two of us walking across the field. Jeff turned round soon after, Orion following suit. Orion's eyes had widened, stupor painted across his features as his eyes flicked between me and Matt approaching. Jeff seemed to notice the expression before Orion could hide it, his smug grin widening.

The Umbreon adjusted his rain jacket collar as he made his way towards us. The man's tail was wagging in a comical manner and I could see that he was scrutinising the two of us. Surprisingly relaxed, I held my breath for a couple of moment before saving myself with a shallow sigh.

'Uh. This is Matt.'

But Orion had already stuck out a hand and Matt shook it roughly. This time he didn't really care about his paw-like appendages, equally as absorbed in the appearance of the Umbreon. I could tell the visitor was unsure about the contact, though a warm smile from Orion seemed to ease any nerves.

'Orion. I guess Kim dropped you off? It's nice to meet you.'

It was almost like Orion knew the boy was coming.

'Matthew Greyson. Yeah. Same.'

I stuck my hands in my pockets, interested at watching the body language of the two. Orion seemed completely engaged in the situation, a world away from the soul he was this morning. Though that begged another question. Was this a common problem that those mutated by the virus would experience? Did they lose themselves to the Pokemon that they looked so much akin to?

'It's nice to see another around…' Orion mentioned offhandedly, '…a Leafeon I'm guessing? Maybe Fenn's already said this. But you're welcome to stay for as long as you'd like.'

The boy nodded. Ah, so that's what Pokemon he was! I didn't know if it was coincidence that they were both evolutions of Eevees …or if I should be referring to them by their species anyway. It's not like you called each other humans on a daily basis. I knew the Eevee genome was supposed to be highly flexible, unstable even, so maybe it had something to do with that. Supposedly some could evolve just by being near certain rocks! Turns out I did learn something at school.

'I'm guessing you've already had the welcome tour of Fort Haste then?' Orion buried his own hands into the pockets of his trousers.

'LINE UP GUYS!'

The three of us jumped at Jeff's loud voice and there was a small giggle from the kids. Turning round to give the Squadron leader a stern glare, I became aware of the set up. The row of children chuckled, Jeff even more so, before waving them back into formation. Meanwhile, Matt was massaging his ears. If Jeff was loud to my ears, his yelling must have been painful to Pokemon hearing.

There was a clatter of arrows on strings as the line of children lifted their bows into position.

'Yes.' I rubbed at my eyes 'We've done the tour.'

Orion turned to the Leafeon who was now scratching at his nearly blonde hair.

'You'll learn to appreciate Jeff's voice. Anyway…like what you see?'

Matt nodded again, casually hiding his furred hands in his Plateau hoodie. The brown seemed to match the colouration of his fur and the grass green colour of his tail. The latter was curled round in such a way that the flat leaf was angled perpendicular to the early afternoon sunlight. It was like some kind of living solar panel.

'So. You interested in staying? Fort Haste welcomes anybody…and we could really do with all the help we can get. You look like you used to be a trainer right?'

Matt nodded, 'Yeah. Yes. I'd love to stay if that's alright.'

'Not a problem.' I replied, offering the teenager a warm smile. It would be nice to have a fresh face around. Only now did I realize the irony behind the situation. The trainer has now become the Pokemon.

Orion was doing the same, beaming at the newcomer. With tails wagging, the two of them already looked like partners in crime. For some reason I felt a pang of jealousy. Pushing that feeling away forcefully, I tugged at my coat in an attempt to right off a shiver.

'We'll have to go through the induction later. To make you a proper Hastie of course.'

It wasn't clear if Orion was joking or not.

'FIRE!'

For a few seconds we all turned our attention back to the line of kids. In a fluid motion they all released their projectiles with a collective pinging sound. For a couple of seconds there was only the sound of wind in the trees before the arrows hit their targets. A dull thud sounded as the shafts imbedded within the straw bales across the sodden grass.

Matt shot a questioning glance towards the two of us, 'A Hastie?' He asked.

I could have laughed at the innocent worry on the kids face. From what he'd seen so far, I could only hope he wasn't imagining Fort Haste as some type of mad cult or something equally absurd.

'The people that live in Fort Haste are called Hasties. The initiation is just introducing you to everybody so there's nothing to worry...I mean. About your Pokémon features. It's more of a safety thing to get you on our lists in case of an emergency.'

Orion frowned slightly.

'Uh about that Fenn. I might have Kim stop by for the night. I've got a few things to do which might overrun into tomorrow.'

I froze. Simply having Kim here was a pain. Two days in a row? That was a little too much to ask. Orion was staring out in the distance and obviously doing his best to avoid my glare.

'Why?' I queried, trying not to act standoffish.

'I was going to have her look over the electrics we disconnected. See if we can set up some internal audio system or something.'

The young adult worded the sentence carefully. His ears twitched nervously and I could feel that Matt was watching the two of us with some interest. He was likely as confused as I was. In fact, I was still in the process of thinking things over when Jeff shouted out for the kids to collect their arrows once more.

'Sounds fine by me.'

Orion's attention snapped back to me as if in shock.

'What!? You don't mind?'

I shrugged, feigning nonchalance. Perhaps something good would come from it. And if it only meant Kim stayed an extra day.

'If it needs doing then do it. Maybe help out? You need a break and getting out will do you some good.'

'Along those lines.' Orion added, 'Roan will be popping by again in a few days.'

I waved off his requests.

'Really Orion. It's fine.'

He seemed to relax upon hearing that, his shoulder sagging a little. Running a hand through his dark hair, he sighed under his breath before turning to Matt.

'Welcome to Fort Haste, Matthew. Have a couple of days to try and settle in before Bass starts assigning you chores. Or Insley tries to drag you into helping….'

I stopped the man with a piercing stare.

'In fact. We were just heading off to help prepare dinner.'

'Great.' Orion gave would could only be called an apologetic look. 'I'll be seeing you round then Matt.'

The newest Hastie smiled for the first time.

'You too, sir.'

* * *

XXX

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 _[_ _ **2.52**_ _] The Animals - Please Don´t Let Me Be Misunderstood (1965)_

 _Baby, sometimes I'm so carefree  
With a joy that's hard to hide  
And sometimes it seems that, all I have to do is worry  
And then you're bound to see my other side_

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 _Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any events, location, and/or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. The views expressed by the characters and/or the narratives do not necessarily reflect the author's views. This fiction is rated T and may be unsuitable for young audiences. 'Fort Haste' is a fictional concept that is owned and regulated by ZenColour._


	5. Chapter 4

FH:WINTER

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"Fort Haste: WINTER" is a recount of a tale set within the Pokémon world - one in which everything has gone wrong. Here we meet the final survivors as they struggle to endure through hell and beyond. An unknown virus has wiped-out most of humanity, leaving behind children which seem to be less affected by the disease. In an attempt to preserve what remains of humanity, Fort Haste was bodged in the months following the pandemic. Even now, the settlement remains at the very heart of the ongoing apocalypse. For everything that has happened and all the trials humanity has faced - Fort Haste stands as a vision of hope.

Please note, this and following chapters will contain both narrative and speech in various dialects and languages. Anything said in Pokémon will be underlined as shown. Normal speech will remain unaffected, although _italics_ and **bold** may be used for effect following standard rules. For whistle calls ***…something like this…*** will be used, and any random flashbacks are marked with {"}.

Fort Haste is a work of fiction written as a collaboration between ZenColour and Just-A-Reader0Love. Both are very thankful for the additional help from Oblivion Wave Productions as a beta reader.

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AUTHOR NOTES

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Zen: _Welcome back! This chapter took a bit longer than expected due to a combination of reasons - but mostly because it marks the start of major deviations away from the original story. We've fitted a lot more information into this and later chapters, and hopefully bumped the tension up too. Once again, thanks to R'Love for really pushing the story content and consistency, as well as Oblivion Wave Productions for their contributions as a beta reader. It's been great fun working on this project!_

R'Love: _This chapter has been polished quite a bit. Well, not a bit, more like a lot. Things are more believable and more human. Hope you enjoy it. :) Also subtle foreshadowing. When writing stories, make sure that everything goes according to plan and lines up with previous information!_

OWP: _I am just glad to be able to help out here. I hate to see a respectable story's impact tarnished by avoidable typos and grammatical mistakes. Hopefully I will be able to effectively and efficiently keep an eye out for errors despite being easily distracted and chronically absentminded._

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 **HAYS SNH Version 1 (0058 PA)**

Forward written by H. Bennett [EXTRACT]

9000406225917 - Sinnoh Outreach Programme for Historical Preservation

 _Based on historical data records from live video footage as recovered from closed-circuit cameras, it was clear that the spread of the V-DPP 'virus' occurred rapidly over the space of a few days. Quarantine zones were set up fairly rapidly, though it has been theorised that earlier strains of the disease may have been airborne. Safe zones deteriorated rapidly with governmental collapse. The last known zone in Kanto was Viridian city, before it was relocated to Fort Haste nearly three months after the suspected outbreak._

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 **CHAPTER 4**

* * *

An excerpt from 'Hays' Journals' I

 _United? There were only two hundred of us. Two hundred to fight a war that required the world to win. This was a conflict of futures. A moment of choice between that which were, and that which we were always meant to be. The decision between doing it together, or doing it alone._

* * *

 **FENN's POV**

* * *

I was kind of looking forward to Kim leaving - not that I wanted to be rude or anything. She was nice enough I guess, but Fort Haste had been in turmoil in long enough. We had the solar panels going through a bodged transformer that sparked when the air was humid. Mike had been enjoying himself, maybe until Kim started poking fun of him in front of Haley. I hadn't seen him turn that red in front of anyone…

But who was left in charge of making sure the teenager had packed up and had a good farewell?

Me of course. How lucky! Not.

Orion had been there to try and convince her to stay this morning, but the quirky girl had turned down the offers with vague excuses. They didn't even seem very heartfelt. In that way I had to respect Kim. She knew what she wanted. Having set up a basic grid system for Fort Haste and a botched inverter for the solar panels - all we needed now was for Mike to hook up the cabling.

And now Kim was eager to head off.

'You sure you got everything?'

We had cleared up everything Kim had claimed belonged to her from Mike's small workshop. The dusty shed was murky in the afternoon light, the battered sofas and junk-covered workbenches somehow empty without Mike inside and her working away at some project. At the back, a chalkboard had sketched of medieval siege weapons that looked like some from a fantasy novel. A Silph Scope hung on a the end of shoelace from the wall, dust collecting on the instrument.

'How many times have you fookin' asked me that in the past four minutes?' Kim pretty much growled. I didn't want to get too close to her because she'd forgone washing for the past couple of days. The teenager smelt a bit, and it didn't help that she wore a grimy leather jacket. To top it off, it was almost as if the tartan beret was glued to her head. The girl was muttering something to herself under her breath.

Kim had a large bundle of things in her hands, largely consisting of a large pile of rucksacks containing her tools of choice. She even had welding equipment in there somewhere, with a small portable tank of argon balancing in the crook of her elbow. It was only her favourite pink backpack that hung from her shoulders.

'Great.' I forced a flat smile, 'Let's be off then shall we?'

I didn't hear what the teenager muttered under her breath. All that I knew was she sounded tired. Maybe that why only a second later she dropped the metal canister of argon, stumbled over the gas, and fell flat on her face. I couldn't catch her in time but her armload of bags at her sides seemed to absorb much of the impact.

What it didn't stop, was the red and white striped woolen beret was tumbling away from her head.

Time stopped. I did not want to believe what I was seeing.

'... Kim' I mouthed, staring at the girl. How long had she been hiding this?

For a moment Kim struggled frantically, trying to get up onto her feet but too weighed down by tangle of straps and fabric. With a groan she stopped, breath leaving her lungs. Lifting her head up, Kim met my gaze solidly.

'Wot you looking at?' Her voice shaky with disbelief.

Her pale face and wide eyes told me she knew exactly what I was staring at.

From her pale blonde hair, two small Espeon ears peeked out. The lavender fur seemed almost fake, but I could tell by the pink flecks in her fringe that I wasn't imaging it. I should have known that she hadn't simply dyed her hair badly. Kim had been infected! She had caught the virus somehow and now...now this!

Crouching, I helped unfurl her slim frame by the pile of bags. Kim watched me wearily, before trying to push me off.

'It's fine Fenn. I can sorta…'

She bit off her words, glaring at me until I shuffled backwards.

'You sure?' I queried. Kim was volatile enough, so I tried to calm the situation down a level. To be honest I think I was struggling more than the tomboy. Millions of questions were swirling round my head and I did everything I could to stop myself from demanding answers.

I should probably tread lightly, what if she tries to make a break for it before I ask her anything.

'Look for fooks sake Fenn I can read your bloodied thoughts...OF COURSE I'M SURE! I'm not some bedamned wild animal!' Her eyes seemed to flicker slightly when she said that, like it was trying to contradict her.

The flare of anger in the small teenager was somewhat alarming. She usually had a deposition between joking and serious, but that anger, was she actually afraid? I still helped her anyway, doing my best to pretend I didn't see the small tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. Sniffing once, she picked herself up and wordlessly grabbed her beret. The teenager placed the hat on her head firmly, clearly squishing her pink Pokémon ears out of view.

A moment later and she was pulling her kit into her arms once more.

I watched, handing across a zipped holdall which weighed as much as a small child.

'So...you…'

'Shut it.' Kim snapped, forcing a snarl onto her face. The scary expression wasn't as frightening as it could have been, mostly because her lip was trembling. Even with the hat on I could still imagine her ears folded flat against her scalp.

'It's ok Kim.' I offered, for the first time actually feeling sorry for the teenager. Her hard-as-nails exterior had in fact been a shell to hide the true fact. She was infected and, just like Megan and recently Matt, it appeared she was turning into a Pokémon. I wasn't sure whether that was the real problem - or it was because it was pink fluffy ears that the otherwise gothic girl had.

'Fenn...just…' She did a bad job at hiding the blush in her cheeks.

'I...I think I understand Kim.' The words came softly as I tried to offer her a small smile. Silently I was thanking the gods that we hadn't yet made it outside of Mike's workshop.

'Instincts right?'

Kim snapped her head in my direction. Her eyes looked me up and down briefly.

'And what the hell would you know?'

'Going by what you said earlier, I think you already know what I think.'

Kim had been in the process of interrupting, but stopped suddenly. Her eyes widened, then narrowed suddenly. I could almost imagine her raising her hackles much like Orion would. How many other Pokémon features did she have? Did she have a tail hiding wedged somewhere under those tight jeans? How did it happen? How long had it been? It must have been terrifying, all by herself….

I only realised I was having these thoughts when I realised that Kim might be able to hear them.

Espeon's were psychic types, right?

Kim was staring at the ground. With a groan she slowly put down her collection of items heavily. Dumping them on the sofa, she straightened out her jacket. Crossing her arms, the teenager had her jaw set tightly.

Her gruff voice came out quietly,

'Yes. Of course it's more Fenn. It's been three weeks because I got reckless, alright? Turns out living on your own can lead to you getting hurt, no surprise there. So now I can hear everything….every damn thing you think and feel - and the hundred other deranged kids you've got here. And the worst of it? Orion knows and still tried to convince me to stay…'

She trailed off, wiping at her face with a black sleeve.

'I'm not crying. You are.' She mumbled, staring at the ground as she refused to show her emotions.

In a way I wanted to comfort her. But this is Kim we're talking about. Kim gets comfort from sleeping on nails and opening bottles with her teeth. She'd probably bite me if I tried to hug her. All I could do was apologize.

'I'm sorry Kim. I didn't know.'

The teenager loosened her shoulders, lifting her eyes to meet mine. A wet smear had rubbed off some of the dirt from one cheek.

'Well now you do. Fort Haste is great and….and I'd love to stay. But I can't. It would drive me crazy. Sheesh, it's already like having a parade going on in my head 24/7 just being here for a weekend.'

Kim started grumbling again, apparently settling back into her old self.

'And you Fenn, should wear a tinfoil hat.'

I blushed, thinking over every I had ever thought of Kim. It must have been terrible - seeing into my thoughts knowing that I didn't like the girl. How much did she know? How much could I believe.

A deep unsettled feeling was welling in my stomach.

'Oh. By the way, everything.' Kim interrupted my internal ramblings. She was juggling her stuff into her arms for what seemed to be the third time in the past ten minutes. With everything in order, she flashed me a wicked smile.

'Can't wait to get rid of me now, eh?' Kim chuckled, though there was no heart to it, 'Can't do anything but not trust me now ya know I can see your thoughts.'

Trying to maintain a calm exterior as my mind whirled internally, I pushed open the door and led the morph out of the workshop. Slamming the door behind us, the winter sun was blinding compared to the dim light inside of Mike's workshop. The bustling sounds of Fort Haste could be heard from across the small farmstead. God knows what it must have been like being able to hear everyone's thoughts as well. It must have been….

'Hell on earth, and that's putting it nicely.' Kim clarified.

That when a thought suddenly arose. I wasn't sure if I need to voice it or not. Kim seemed to be making the most of payback for my rudeness of the past few days. Even if her psychic powers had been voiced as a burden, she was making the most of them now.

'Can you look into people's mind to...you know...see if their crazy or not?'

Turning to check on Kim walking silently behind me, her eyebrows were furrowed.

' _Asking for a friend are we_?'

Kim voice sounded muted. Walking down the side of the old farmhouse, the two of us heading towards the main gate fairly quickly. The beaten red mitsubishi pickup sat along the old road beyond the Lee slopes, dwarfed by the defence between it and the palisade.

The kid on duty must have seen us coming, for the gate were opening up ready for Kim before we even got there.

'Wait…' I tried to stop the teenager but she flashed me a rugged smile.

' _I'll keep in touch_.'

I nodded, only realising a second later that Kim hadn't even moved her lips.

When Kim left, I almost thought things couldn't have gotten any crazier.

Having returned to the peace and quiet of the farmhouse, I swore upon hearing Orion nearly running up the stairs. A second later and the man's head popped round the door of upstairs meeting room. The golden rings on his ears were glowing slightly as he flashed me a sheepish grin.

There was a few whistles calls blaring outside but I ignored the coded signals.

'Uh...you mind popping down to help out with something.'

'I'm busy, Orion.'

My flat rejection seemed to upset the man, who seemed unsure of what to do now. With a sigh, I offered a weak smile to the man. The bags under his blood-shot eyes made dark halos across his face.

'When was the last time you got more than three hours sleep?' I asked the morph softly, 'You look dead on your feet.'

Orion just shrugged, 'Uh...I've been sleeping fine.'

'You look like a wreck.' I ignored his forced puppy-dog eyes, that only highlighted the tiredness riddled across his expression. 'What do you want then?' I gave in.

The man paused, before explaining quickly, 'We've got a new visitor to show around and I've got a session I should be doing now and…'

Orion trailed off. Putting my pen down, I leant back in my chair with my arms crossed. Paper was spread out across the circular meeting table. It was supposed to be organized but I was struggling enough as it was. Now I had Orion to distract me too.

Too bad he had piqued my interest.

'What? Somebody else has been found? Are they here now?'

It was at that point that Orion's ears dropped. Already I knew something wasn't quite right.

'Not exactly.' He mumbled, still with only his head showing around the pine door. 'I was expecting them. He was with the Wildlings for a while and decided he would like to join us so I ... he should be here any minute now and…'

'And you forgot to tell anyone?' I glared at him, 'Or you _chose_ not to tell us until the last minute.'

'Maybe.' He admitted,

I pushed myself to my feet.

'You want me to show around a Pokémon? How about I just take over your session? You know, seems I'm not the one that can talk to them.'

Orion hung his head, but didn't say anything.

'Come on then.' I sighed heavily, before kicking my chair back under the table. 'Is there anything else you need to tell me?'

Orion seemed to think for a moment.

'Yeah...he's a Lucario. And he's a member of the Vetra. At least I still think he is...'

I laughed, waving for Orion to lead the way back downstairs. The man didn't move though, fixing me with a confused glance. He almost seemed offended.

'That was a joke, right?' My cheery tone was replaced with one of confusion. 'You're not serious, are you?'

The Umbreon shook his head,

'You've heard of them, right? Vetra?'

'That's a fairytale, Orion.' I told him perhaps a little harshly, 'Why don't we go and meet him, and we can talk more there.'

Orion sighed, tugging at the collar of his jacket. Trudging downstairs, I grabbed my own coat and we headed back outside.

So much for a relaxing Sunday morning.

* * *

 **MATT's POV**

* * *

It was getting colder. I was shivering when I woke up, though it took me a long time to become aware of the fact. Lucidity came in dribs and drabs before, with a yawn, I forced myself awake. Blinking to clear the dim pre-dawn light only managed to make things blurry from an eyeful of sleep dust. Disorientated, it was only upon realising that I was at the bottom of my bed that things made sense. It happened again. Ever since I'd been cursed with these features things were progressively getting more embarrassing. Uncurling my large tail and waving the blood back into it was only effective at wafting cold air over my skinny body.

Sometimes it was hard to remember what summer was like. This new world was bleak and unforgiving.

Pushing away the unease at finding myself sleeping balled up like some animal, I slid off the bed and onto my feet. Just like fingers, my feet were decidedly more paw-like than human. Finding my Jolteon plush had fallen to the floor, I picked up the soft toy and tucked him back into bed. Hey don't judge me ok? Not only was it a gift from my dad when I was seven, but the last reminder I had on my family.

Fenn had been kind enough to give me a room in the farmhouse neighbouring Orion's. Heat rose up through the floorboards from the fire burning in the girls' bedroom below. That didn't stop ice from forming on the inside of the windows. The crystals shimmered as I lit a candle for illumination. Getting dressed at double speed, I chucked on the only clothes I had and crept out of my room.

Since travelling on my own, I'd made it a thing to be up at the crack of dawn. Before the sun rose there was a time between time where yesterday was over but tomorrow hadn't yet arrived. That habit was still there even though I'd been at Fort Haste nearly a week. Said habit had also saved my life a few times, so it's not something I could let go of easily. Beyond that? Well. Everything else had changed. Hell, my whole life had been tipped back the right way around. Now I felt safe.

Orion's door was wide open and his bed empty. Although, I'd learnt that was far from unusual. I'd never actually seen the man sleep.

I rubbed at my eyes wearily.

The Hasties were a strange group of people. Then again, the transition from being the only person in the world to one in a couple of hundred was a shock. I had barely slept the night before arriving. Then again, Kim's home wasn't the most comfortable places. Meeting her had been one thing, but her rather blunt description of Fort Haste hadn't done the place justice. Then again, she was a strange creature who seemed to think it was acceptable to joke about my appearance. It had been impossible to imagine what this place was even going to be like.

My feet were fine I decided, slipping them into a pair of woolly socks. They might have been a bit more hairy than one would like - but they still worked. I might have lost some natural dexterity in my hands, but they still did everything I wanted to do now without the need to wear gloves. What was really annoying was the tail stuck out of my backside. I can't remember what it was like to sleep on your back - or wear pants that actually fit.

Fenn had helped with that. Turns out, with Orion being how he is and all, they had a solution. The girl had cut a slot into my jeans, making them into something presentable within a few minutes. Just like magic my trousers now had a new hole to stick my tail through. It didn't stop there though. Within only a few days of kipping down on the floor I had a whole new set of clothes, a bed to sleep on, as well as two to three solid meals a day. Life had flickered from suicide to "I'm going to survive" in the space of a weekend. I felt hope again.

Already, Fort Haste felt like home.

Nobody seemed to care that I looked like some weird mutant Leafeon thing. That's If you could ignore the ears, and only if I was wearing enough to cover the fur coating much of my torso. My hair was slowly changing from the black colour it had always been to a faded mottled green-beige mess. By now it was pretty much golden in colour, much like what you'd expect from a Leafeon. It was hard to recognise myself in the mirror. Especially those emerald eyes. I had to remind myself not to get lost staring in them.

Creeping downstairs, I plucked my boots from the row along the hallway and pushed open the front door. Leaving the warmth of the farmhouse behind me, I lifted up my hood to cover my features and stepped out into the winter wonderland. Sunlight reflected off the high albedo of the fresh snow and ice. Basking in the rays, I could feel the photons shimmer across my skin. With the cold rays came a surge of warmth and happiness. It was as if the very air was tingling with energy, making my hair stand on end. It was all I could do not to bathe in the glow. Photosynthesis was the one and only upside to my transformation.

But although the sun provided plenty of light, it didn't do much in the way of heat. It wasn't long before I was shivering. The grey concrete underfoot was slippery and I trod with care in my old boots. Having lived in them for the past year or so, they had lost most of their grip.

'Matthew!'

Orion was pacing towards me in a way that was somehow hurriedly casual. Blinking for a few moments, I took in the man with the sleeves of his green waterproof rolled up. The trenchcoat looked amusing when paired with his black jeans, as well as a pair of wellies. It somehow suited the man, whose Umbreon-tail wagged slightly behind him.

'I was just coming to get you…' Orion itched at his hair, his black lobate ears perking up slightly.

'Is everything ok?'

'Yeah. Just checking you didn't want to miss out on lunch. We saved a bit for you and...'

'Lunch?' My eyes widened. I didn't mean to interrupt, 'Is it that time already?'

'Sure is.' Orion chuckled even as my heart sank. I thought I'd gotten into routine by now. The natural pause was something the Umbreon seemed to pick up on immediately.

'You doing alright? Settling in? Maintaining your sanity?'

The leader of Fort Haste had his hands buried in his pockets, though his shoulders were remarkably tense. He was maintaining eye contact to a somewhat uncomfortable degree, though that could have been my own interpretation of his startling bright red eyes. It wouldn't have been inappropriate if I asked him the same question.

'Yep.' I mumbled, looking up to find Orion watching my tail. It was stuck out awkwardly, rotated near perfectly to maximise the sun rays landing on the green chloroplasts. The movement had happened naturally and unthinkingly. It was yet another strange characteristic I had slowly become used to.

It wasn't that was I trying to hide the shame on my face, but I pulled my hood up anyway.

But although Orion had been staring, his eyes were somewhat glazed over. It was as if the man was deep in thought, gazing through reality itself into a distance that didn't exist.

'Uh...Orion?' I was tempted to wave my paw in front of him. 'You were looking for me?' I prompted

The man snapped out of it in an instant, forcing on a slightly sheepish grin. The deep-maroon cravat he had slung around his neck only acted to bring out the blood red colouration of his eyes.

'Yeah. Right. We're having a meeting in ten minutes. Thought you might want to listen in whilst you eat? We usually have them up in the farmhouse, but we can go and grab something for you to take up.'

'Cool, can do.' My tail was wagging before I could stop it.

The Umbreon-morph was already turning on his heels. It was odd seeing somebody already so used to the unnatural changes. From everything I'd seen, it was as if Orion had been part Umbreon all his life.

I fell into step behind the man who seemed to stride across the yard and towards the Foodhall. Fort Haste loomed around us, the buildings steaming slightly in the cold. Even the wooden feather boards that covered many of the shed exteriors had small icicles hung from them. Most people were inside, although a stray Pidgey was pecking at the frozen ground. Startled at our approach, the bird took flight while cursing loudly. Hearing Pokémon speak had many undesired consequences.

Tugging my chocolate-brown hoodie around my shoulder, I followed Orion up towards the kitchens.

Our footsteps echoed on the rough concrete.

The kitchens were not really what they were described as. A row of ancient oil-burning stoves lined the back wall, adapted to burn wood. Three wobbly chimneys ran up to the roof, rusting away in the damp air. In front of them, two rows of chunky oak tables were laid out with utensils and various pots and pans. A sink on the far side, and two ply board partitions was all that separated the kitchen from the rest of the shed.

A couple of stools was dotted round for those on duty. For now, that appeared to be a couple of girls cleaning the grime of porcelain dishes. The only addition was a rather haggard looking boy sat watching from a stool. He had a designer jacket on which seemed stretched to fit. A bubble of uncertainty rose within my stomach. Of every Hastie within camp, it was James I was told specifically not to interact with.

'Oh look who it is! I don't think we have pet treats.' The boy sneered. In fact, his face seemed stuck in a disgruntled expression. There was dirt stains across his face. I couldn't blame the kid for slouching in front of the kitchen complex. It was notably warmer down this end of the barn.

'Good day to you too James,' Orion sighed. The man had already given me a flat look that said ' _stand back and say nothing'._ I was all too happy to oblige, thankful I had my hoodie covered my large green ears.

'Is there a reason that you're not helping out?' Orion spoke calmly, though with a hint of disappointment his voice.

James shrugged casually. He was dripping with contempt.

'Meh. Nobody tells me what to do.'

The tone of his voice was unsettling but somehow Orion seemed unbothered, 'Yeah. Do you mind grabbing us anything left over from breakfast? I asked for a couple of bowls to be left on the hot plates. They're probably done by now.'

The request was met with a steep flare.

'Look. You don't tell me what to do.' James looked like he was barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

'Cool. You mind grabbing some stuff anyway?'

At that comment, the teenager lifted himself up off his stool slowly. My eyes analysed the situation with the cold precision of a Pokémon trainer. It was something I'd mastered over the past few years. Immediately I could tell he was acting the big guy. It was something the kid could have pulled off back before the apocalypse. Now he was just a wide-framed bag of bones. That being said, James held himself confidently whilst puffing his chest out.

Orion seemed unfazed, even though I naturally took a step back. It was clear James was itching for a fight. Mixed feelings welled up in my chest of both uncertainty and dislike.

'Fook off.' The boy stuck his chin out, 'Sort your fookin' self out.'

The situation was become increasingly toxic. What the hell did this kid think he was doing? No. He knew exactly what he was doing. Thankfully, Orion didn't take the bait. The leader of Fort Haste simply leveled his gruff voice.

'Is there something you need to talk about James?'

Orion's tone was monotone and smooth. There was nothing to provoke the teenager further, though from my expert eye I could tell that Orion was ready for an full blown attack. He held himself lightly on the balls of his feet, tail lifted slightly for extra balance. He had his hands held loosely, shoulders barely visible under his thick green rifles jacket but relaxed all the same. Maybe the extra years Orion had made James appear less imposing. The aggression smeared across the arrogant boy's face was enough to make me back down.

In fact, James was nearly as tall as the Umbreon-morph. Nor was he the type to shrink under another man's gaze. He was almost _enjoying_ it.

James took a step closer.

'I told you to fook off.'

It was only then that he appeared to notice me, hanging back awkwardly. James's piggy eye lit up upon seeing a weaker target, and a cold grin twitched across his mouth.

'And what do you think you're lookin' at greeny?' He was chuckling at his own joke before he'd even finished. To be honest, Kim had come up with worse insults and she was trying to kind at the time. I was more insulted that James couldn't come up with anything better.

Behind, the girls working in the kitchen had their heads down, but were clearly listening in. Orion was in the process of trying to diffuse the situation but James had locked me in a face off.

I'd learnt from my numerous years stuck in trainer's school how guys like James did things.

Maybe that's why I snapped the words out before my logical mind could react.

'Stop being a dick, mate.'

It took a few seconds for the words to register, most likely because the hard-acting kid didn't expect a reply. Spinning to face me, a snarl was already covering his face. Eyes like daggers.

'What did you say?'

That bit of heroism in me sort of drained out at that point.

'I'm talking to…'

 _'Hunter. Is there a problem?'_

The voice was eerie, my brain hearing the sound whilst my large leaf-like ears failed to notice anything. That was hastily explained, however, by the Lucario that stepped into the kitchen. His deep maroon eyes took in the situation with a remarkably quick inspection.

All of us jumped at the voice. James had seen the Pokémon as soon as he entered the kitchen, even as Orion and I turned to see the newcomer. A bit of colour drained from the bully's face as his eyes darted between us and the newcomer. With a couple of small steps he backed off, before shimmying around and leaving the kitchen entirely.

Orion watched the boy go, a sad expression briefly crossing his face.

Rolling his shoulders, he turned his attention to the Lucario that had appeared.

'Sorry about that, Hauser.'

Orion was speaking in a Pokémon tongue, though it sounded oddly natural on his voice. Half of me heard the growls and whatnot for the animal sounds they were. But the Leafeon half of me heard each internation on each word as if I'd been fluent in the Pokémon language for life. The feeling made my skin crawl. I felt violated, knowing that the virus had done this to me.

The Lucario that now joined us looked older than I thought possible. In the past I'd only ever seen two of his kind, both of which had belonged to strong trainers. The steel types had always looked undeniably tough, and Hauser was no exception. Yet there was something different to this individual however.

It was almost paradoxical. He stood straight, although outwardly he appeared relaxed. With his fur a thick winter coat, there was as much grey as natural tones touching his normally blue and beige coat. Deep scars ran across his muzzle, and several across his chest which puckered his prestine coat. The Lucario's eyes glowed, but with wisdom rather than intent. With a narrow canine face, he gained in statuesque what he lost in ruggedness.

 _'Sorry to intrude. I felt something amiss and came to investigate. Fenn had just finished with her tour and I thought it might be best to find you now that your session is complete.'_

Hauser paused for a moment to study me. If I hadn't been watching his eyes I'd never have known. In fact, it was such a short glance up and down my skinny frame that I was unsure if it had happened at all. Something at the back of my mind told me that the Pokémon was most likely reading my aura. Maybe being part Pokémon meant I was more aware of such things. Lucario's were known to read the emotions of people. However, it was a skill that few actually honed.

This Lucario looked like he'd had enough lifetimes to do that and more.

There was a tiredness in his eyes as he greeted me softly.

 _'You must be the Leafeon that Hunter was talking about.'_

I nodded, not knowing what to say. To my surprise the Pokémon stuck out a paw and I shook it roughly with my own. The steel spike on the back seemed impossibly sharp.

 _'You are as much a stranger here as I. Though, I see you settling in well.'_

Hauser's voice was gruff and deep, but dropped into my mind like ripples in a pond. His jaw didn't move as he spoke. Somehow the experience was like having waves wash over you.

'Uh…cool.' Orion seemed anxious, suddenly becoming aware of where we were. 'Well, now that a late lunch is off the cards, should we get things kicked off?'

Orion noticed my confusion.

'The team meeting.' He reminded me softly, running a hand through his dark hair, 'If you don't mind, I'd like you both to pop along. It would be good to have some external help. It'll also give you a chance to see how things are run around here Hauser.'

The man sighed, before turning his back to the kitchen.

Hauser actually offered him a toothy grin.

' _What was that all about Hunter?'_ He asked. It appeared that Orion and the Lucario had known each other for a significant amount of time. It was clear by the body language of both that they were relaxed around each other. We weaved between the tables of the Foodhall and out onto the yard. A few Hasties were passing between places in the time between sessions. Nobody took much notice of the three of us.

'James has some issues…' Orion spoke quietly, adjusting his trenchcoat across his shoulders 'The kid's violent. I'd recommend avoiding him as much as possible. He's not a fan of your looks, if you get what I mean.'

That latter was directed at me, the man waiting until I finally met his gaze. His eyes looked like they had been drained of all the enthusiasm, a shadow of what they could have been. I had heard that Orion had mood shifts. After that sudden confrontation, he seemed to have withdrawn into himself. The tone of his voice suggested some mirth but it was a poor attempt.

Walking to our side, the Lucario was taking in the surroundings with a watchful eye. The sheds weren't much to look at for sure, but Fort Haste went much further than its looks. You only needed a few days here to realize that the place ran like a well oiled machine. It was organized like an army, but with the mood of a kids summer camp. Somehow within all of that was a blend of modern society with something that looked like a roman log fort.

So I wasn't at all surprised at the Lucario's wide eyes wonderment.

'Not as you expected it?' Orion chuckled at Hauser's expression.

 _'I have been among humans before. But this place is different.'_ The Pokémon's words were dropped into our minds like small pebbles. ' _I can see what you have done here.'_

'Roan has said a similar thing,' Orion rubbed at his eyes 'I will have to ask you what you mean at some point. Anyway, let's get into the warm.'

Hauser nodded, following the Umbreon's lead as he pushed open the garden gate and climbed the wide steps up to the front door. The old Lucario smoothed the fur across his chest as if to make himself look more presentable.

Hearing the gate close behind me, I turned round to find Fenn stumbling up the garden path with a large urn in both hands.

'Morning Matt, do you mind giving me a hand with this?'

'Uh, no worries.'

I bent down to help lift the metal container, holding it up easily with a hand - if I could even call it a hand anymore. Between the two of us we carried the water carefully up to the front door. I was impressed that the teenager had managed to get it this far in the first place.

'How are you feeling?' Fenn asked as she closed the door behind her. Without waiting for reply, she continued to push more questions in my direction. 'I saw what happened with James. At least, the tail end of it. Sorry about that. He can be...well…'

At that moment I was taking the entire weight of the urn and couldn't do much more than force out a grin. The metal started to feel warm through my lightly padded paws. The urn quickly became heavier than it looked. I nearly fell forward before Fenn caught me, once more sharing the weight of ten kilos of water between us.

'Oops, there we go.' She grinned, 'Feeling better compared to yesterday?'

I nodded.

'Yes, thank you. I got to sleep in a actual bed again, so no complaints there. Five out of five, would recommend.'

My stomach took that precise moment to rumble loudly. Either Fenn didn't notice or politely chose to ignore the sound. It wasn't worth saying that I'd already missed two meals today. That wasn't something you could get away with in this day and age. Still, I was taken aback for a moment at Fenn's display of affection. Quickly realizing that we were heading upstairs to the meeting room, I picked the urn up again and ignored the burning in my ears. I'd almost forgotten what it was like living in Fort Haste. Here, you actually had people there looking out for you. It left a warm feeling in my stomach.

Sounds of chatter came across the landing. Passing my small bedroom, the floorboards creaked under our combined weight. At last we hefted the warm water into the meeting room - a converted bedroom that now squeezed in a round table big enough to sit all seven of us. Though, it was a tight fit. Orion had sat himself down in front of the bay window with Hauser, the Lucario looking a little awkward in the room full of young adults.

As a indirect result of the overcrowding, the room was toasty warm. The sun streaming through the window brightened the place considerably.

'I saved you a seat Matt!' Orion patted the old office chair beside him. It just so happened to be in the brightest spot in the room. Having dumped down the hot water on the table, Fenn was already pouring drinks as I fell into the padded seat. The scent of hot chocolate wafted over me and I had nearly had a sugar rush from the scent of the beverage.

'It's made with cocoa powder. There was some left in the cupboards and even though it was a little past the expiration date, it never truly goes bad.' Fenn said as she finished stirring a mug. I don't think anyone else noticed one chipped mug that she held to the side, a good distance away from the others. Maybe it was my imagination, but I could have sworn she poured something extra into that one?

Adjusting my tail out from under me, it naturally uncurled itself and turned to face the warm sunlight. My ears perked up on their own accord. Even my hoodie can't keep them down when I'm excited.

Insley slid a warm mug in my direction. I caught it with both of my paws, not wanting to tip it over.

Naturally I burnt my tongue on the first sip, too impatient to wait for the liquid to cool. Though it was worth it to have the luxury of tasting chocolate again, even if it did have an aftertaste of damp.

Mike was the last person to take his seat, falling into the chair was a clatter. Dropping his wax jacket to the floor, he rolled up the sleeves of his hoodie and accepted a drink off Fenn. With the steaming mug cradled between his cold fingers, he gave me a wink.

'How are you feeling this morning then Matt?'

I shrugged. Mike was a nice guy and I felt like we'd got off to a good start. He was easy going and clearly a bit of a genius when it came to out-of-the-box thinking. Modest without a doubt, it took me a moment to remind myself that these guys were all my age and younger. Being invited to sit in on the meeting, I was sort of expecting to be surrounded by adults. But these were still kids. Maybe a little tired and mature far beyond their age - but kids nonetheless. Only Orion seemed to stand out as being older, clearly shown by the shape of his face. You could tell without a doubt that he was the leader, a marked shift upon entering the room to the man I saw previously.

And then there was Hauser and I. The Lucario seemed more at peace with his chair sat back slightly out of the circle. It was a clear statement that he was here to watch. That being said, I couldn't ignore the sideways looks he was getting from the Chain. Fenn in particular was watching him with distrust.

Mike was still looking at me expectantly.

'You alright?' He asked again. 'You missed lunch right?'

I sighed, 'Yeah. Still adjusting to life here I guess.'

Grinning knowingly, Mike threw a teabag into his own cup, skimping out on the hot chocolate.

'It's fine once you get used to the schedule. Fort Haste runs on its own clock.'

The urn had one of those little plastic taps in the bottom. At the moment it was dripping onto the mahogany table every few seconds.

Bass and Insley, as well as Jane sat across the opposite side of the table and seemed to be engaged in conversation about a Christmas party of some sorts. The three girls were nice enough, though I hadn't really talked to them much outside of meal times. Insely had strong features and shoulder length hair which she was running through her hands. Bass, she seemed to be speaking most hotly over the subject.

Fenn was the last to sit down, opening a large notebook in front of her as she did so.

'Did you want to introduce your guest then Orion?' The second in command asked a little stiffly.

The Umbreon-morph looked up from his own mug of hot chocolate. The golden rings on his ears were glowing slightly.

'Um…well I've have done to everybody else but I might as well make it formal.' He waved a hand towards the Lucario sat next to him. 'This Is is Hauser. He's a friend of the Wildlings and will be staying with us for a while. He's looking to help out with what he can. So, Yeah.'

Hauser nodded once, eyes closing for a brief moment. For that second I was sure that he was doing something aura related, for I felt a slight shift at the back of my mind. Everything seemed slightly bigger, but the feeling was gone as soon as I could recognise it.

'Uh…Insley?' Mike cleared his throat to get the girl's attention. She was still in a verbal battle to have the last word in their conversion. For a moment her eyes were daggers, before finally silence fell upon the room. Orion swallowed before starting to speak. He fidgeted with the mug in front of him.

'So...Right. I've been talking with Roan about the Wildlings - and about the future for both of us through Winter. They seem happy to help with anything, and have even offered to have some come and stay with us to offer some protection. I met Hauser here. He's..' Orion paused for a moment, struggling to find the right words. 'Well he's a member of Vetra...or ex-member I guess now? He's a…'

Insley took that exact moment to snort hot chocolate out of her nose. She was laughing loudly whilst attempting to wipe wet snot away with her sleeve. I half expected her to pass out.

'You're joking right?!' The girl gasped. Fenn had her arms crossed and was staring at Orion like he'd lost his mind. Even I had to admit, his claim was a utterly ridiculous. The Vetra was a kids story about a band of Pokémon that went around saving the world from various threats. It was something completely fiction, with guys in Pinewood Studios even going as far to make films out of the story. I remember them being pretty good. Then again, anything on the big screen was cool as a seven year old. It was also the same day I got my one and only Jolteon plush. Those were the days.

The Umbreon morph was frowning heavily, looking towards the aged Lucario for backup.

' _The organisation did once exist. Which I assume acted as inspiration for the human tales.'_ Hauser dropped the words into my head. At this point, I think everybody was too involved with the conversation to care at the absurdity at this point.

' _Right_ …' Insley drawled, 'Next you'll be telling us there are legendary birds which control the weather!'

Even Bass and Mike were chuckling at that comment. 'Don't you mean the legend of Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres' Bass piped up.

'Yeah. That's them!' Insley chortled, 'You know there are some crazy groups that actually think they exist!'

To be honest, I took a little offence at that last comment. There had been some serious science to get some real evidence behind sightings. Even the renowned professor Oak had taken a few years to look into the potential of legendary Pokémon. It was one of those wild fantasies of a Pokémon that every trainer wanted to catch. Nearly all of the Chain were chuckling under their breath.

Neither Orion nor Hauser seemed to share their enthusiasm. Strangely, neither did Fenn. It was the fair-haired girl than finally quieted down the loud-mouthed Insley, and once more brought calm to the meeting room.

' _I apologise if I offended anyone.'_ Hauser bowed his head slightly. The black aura-organs hidden behind his blue pointed ears were floating slightly in the humid air. ' _But as Hunter uh...Orion said, I would like to stay for awhile and contribute what I can. The virus has affected us all and we need to band together if we want to survive.'_

Although I had become used to the tingling sensation of Hauser's speech, Mike seemed to twitch with each word. He lifted a hand to itch at his chin. Such body language was something the Lucario picked up on remarkably quickly. He rubbed at the greying fur speckling his black muzzle,

 _'Apologies,'_ Hauser shifted awkwardly in his seat, _'I hope you don't mind me communicating like this. I understand it makes some people uncomfortable.'_

'No worries…uh Hauser, it would be really helpful if you could talk using aura actually.' Fenn scribbled something down on her notebook before lifting her eyes to Orion. It appeared she'd been making notes continuously for the past minute. I couldn't even guess what on.

'I'm guessing that there was an important reason why you wanted to call an emergency meeting.' Fenn asked Orion, tapping her pen on the table. 'What's so important that we need to break our schedule?'

The Umbreon placed his mug down steadily. He had chugged down half of the beverage already, but eyed the drink as he moved out of the way. He still had his trenchcoat on, though the sleeves had been rolled up to show his pale arms lightly furred with black hair. The fingers of one hand drummed on the table nervously.

'I have some good news and some bad news.' He leant forward on his elbows. 'The chat with Roan and the other Wildlings was very helpful but brought to light something that has been worrying us for a while now. That fact that Kim voiced the same concerns is alarming - especially given the spider attack we had almost a week ago.'

All eyes were on the man and I could see him chewing over his words.

'As far as we're aware, something drove those Ferals to attack.' Mike spoke up once it was clear Orion wasn't going to be speaking anytime soon. 'What more do you know beyond that?' He asked, running a hand through his mass of ginger hair.

'I don't have much information on that specifically I'm afraid…' Orion sighed, 'But the Wildlings have suffered attacks as well and, from what I can tell, the Ferals' numbers have sharply increased. Normally Ferals keep to themselves unless provoked, but Kim said she's seen them working together. We always assumed that the virus drove them mad. But somehow they are teaming up. I don't think it's natural.'

'Nothing about any of this is natural.' Jane spoke firmly, getting a few nods from the other member of the Chain.

Orion finally took another sip of hot chocolate. After a moment he wrinkled his nose, putting the mug down quickly. Only the sound of Fenn scribbling away in her notebook broke the atmosphere that descended like a cloud.

'Roan had some guys visit the old camp up on Berry Hill the day before yesterday. After what happened with me up there, they've been keeping a close eye on the place. The only thing is...yesterday they found the camp deserted. Hauser was there, actually.'

The Lucario nodded, looking around the table at the sudden peak in interest.

' _There were signs of some kind of scuffle. We found evidence of two graves, so they stayed long enough to bury the dead. Beyond that, all we know is that…'_

'They're dead?' Jane nearly dropped her mug, catching it in the last second. 'The hell? What happened?'

' _All we know is that they left and headed further south into the forest.'_ Hauser explained, watching the doctor as she scrubbed at her face with a sleeve. It took a moment for her to reset her glasses.

'They could have been fighting amongst themselves.' Orion added, 'Though the Wildlings think it may have been Ferals.'

Fenn looked up from her notebook.

'Ferals?' She reiterated,

Orion sighed,

'Roan believes that something is organizing the Ferals and using them to attack. I found evidence that something is going on. They had stakes stuck through them for shite's sake!'

The leader of Fort Haste leant back in his chair, ears laid flat against his head. The bags under his eyes added a haunted look to the man, not that he didn't need it. His red eyes blinked a few more times that were needed.

'Sorry. I'm drifting off here.' Orion rubbed at his nose, eyeing his hot chocolate momentarily before downing the remaining liquid.

 _'I must also mention,_ ' The Lucario spoke quietly via aura, ' _There is a large concentration of Ferals in a locality about four miles southeast of the main Wildling territory. It's greater than anything I've ever seen. But Roan's main camp is situated between there and Berry Hill. If the attack at Berry Hill was due to one of these organized Feral units, it proves that they have the ability to sneak significant numbers through a good distance of heavily populated territory undetected._ '

It took a long while for that information to sink in. Mike was lent back in his chair next to me, a hand holding a piece of string which he was weaving around his fingers. Everyone's eyes turned to the boy as he spoke.

'So you're saying that the Ferals themselves lack intelligence. But they are clever enough to organise themselves? Something doesn't seem right here.'

Orion shook his head, 'When Pokémon are affected by the virus, we count it as dead. They're just zombies. '

'And how do you know all of this?' Insley asked in that loud voice of hers, 'This sounds like a lot of ideas but little hard evidence. You mention the spikes and we have no fookin idea. You're going off the words of a crazy girl and a Sawsbuck to scaremonger us? What the hell are we supposed to do with this information. So what if there are more Ferals? Hell, I went took a bit of a stroll to the forest to the southeast and all I got was a migraine.'

'She's right,' Bass added. 'Well, apart from leaving Fort Haste. That was stupid.' she added under her breath before continuing in her small voice, 'No offence but we've got enough to worry about in Fort Haste. We can't do much but hope they just leave us alone.'

There was an awkward silence. Even I was tempted to say something just to break the tension. In the middle of the table, hot water continued dripping infrequently from the large urn.

It was Mike who spoke up at last.

'For now, that may be the best approach. If the Wildlings are monitoring them, they all we can do is watch and see what happens. I'm not sure if Jeff will be happy or angry that there are more Ferals now, the poor guy.'

' _That may not be the best course of action.'_ Hauser contered, ' _I don't mean to be rude. But Ferals vary considerably from the Pokémon they originally were. Their aura becomes…muddled…and they lose any sense of identity. It should not be possible for them to gather in this way. They're prone to killing each other.'_

The greying Lucario took a deep breath. It seemed that speaking via aura took a considerable amount of concentration. After a moment he continued, ' _Ferals are animalistic and live through their base instincts. They lack any morality and kinship_.'

'So what you're saying...is that something is controlling them?' Fenn asked. She had been scribbling down more notes, and barely even lifted her eyes when querying the Pokémon. Her blonde hair brushed the table as she attacked the paper with her pen.

I shivered suddenly. The temperature of the room felt like it had dropped a degree. Everyone seemed to be thinking in the lull and I felt a little out of place within the group. Struggling to know what (if any) input I could add worried my thoughts. Sitting in silence seemed a wise move, even as I tried to make sense of the implication behind Hauser's words.

Just talking about the Ferals brought back bad memories of dealing with the beasts. I went to place my paws on my forehead to to force the memories to whence they came, but I noticed that my claws had decided to unsheathe themselves. With stupid Pokémon instincts, it was like I always had my heart on my sleeve! I quickly sheathed them.

Making eye contact with Bass, she flashed a small smile. I wondered if she felt as out of depth as I did.

'Could a psychic Pokémon be controlling them?' Jane asked after a long while. 'You know, using their bodies or something?'

'It that even possible?' I found myself asking. I'd had a lot of experience battling psychics and knew that their powers were limited beyond often basic telekinesis.

Hauser seemed to to consider his answer, but it was Orion who spoke.

'The real question is why.' His voice came out a little slurred and he cleared his throat. 'The Ariados had clearly been in physical contact within whatever…' He trailed off, obviously struggling to make this thoughts coherent. 'What bre mean is...umm what do the stakes through them have to bre with this?'

The leader of Fort Haste itched at his throat, reddening slightly. Thankfully, nobody brought up his slips. Maybe it was something that commonly happened within the chain meetings?

'So somebody has something against Fort Haste? Then it's likely that the spiders were just a test.'

'Someone is testing us?' Bass asked, pulling her chair a bit closer to the table, 'So we're all just agreeing here that something is controlling the Ferals?'

'It seems that way.' Fenn mumbled from her writing.

She stopped suddenly,

Taking a moment to look at every member of the Chain sitting around the table, she drew in a small breath. 'So that's the conclusion that you've come to? We should be expecting a large Feral attack led by some psychic Pokémon who has a thing against humans?'

'One that likes to skewer Ferals for fun.' Insley joked bitterly, 'First you try and claim that this Lucario dude is a member of Vetra. And no you're telling me some crazy psychic Pokémon can control zombies to attack us. None of this makes any fookin sense!'

The rest of the chain seemed to stare at Insley at once. The fiery teenager was known to have a foul mood, but it had become clear she'd immediately pushed it too far.

There was a brief moment of silence.

'What do you think Matt?' Orion asked suddenly, turning his tired eyes to me solemnly.

'Uhhh…' I struggled to find the right words. 'To be honest...I have to agree with Insley.'

'Yes!' The cook on the opposite side of the table pumped her fist. 'Even the Leafeon agrees with me...no offence Matt.'

I waved her off, trying to hide the blush creeping up my neck.

'The issue is that it's a possibility.' Orion interrupted not a moment too soon, 'If anything we need to consider improving out defences.'

'In all fairness Orion,' MIke interjected, 'I can't see how that's possible. We're at our limits now. I don't really see what more we can do bar pouring concrete walls around the place.'

'Just saying.' The Umbreon morph rose his hands, 'It wouldn't hurt prioritising the gabions and stuff. Maybe we can start working the the defensive weaponry you've been designing Mike...stuff like that.'

I didn't need Hauser's extrasensory ability to feel the vibe around the table. If anything, it was clear that everyone was a little shook up at the prospect of an impending Feral attack - even if they were struggling to accept the fact. Even the back of my mind was agreeing with the logic that Orion was explaining.

Fenn had stopped writing for the first time and instead looked at the notebook with uncharacteristic intensity. Jane was sitting with her head in her hands, with Insley staring into the distance somewhat deep in thought. Again, I felt the touch of the Lucario's aura against the back of my mind and I turned to look at the Pokémon. His red eyes were moving round us each in turn and I knew he was most likely reading our emotions - maybe even our thoughts? It didn't take a genius to understand the uncertainty and fear hanging in the room.

Only Orion seemed to buck the trend.

'I have more to add...' The Umbreon straightened himself, 'I did promise some good news. After talking to Roan bre've come to an agreement to collaborate further. Some Pokémon wish to join us.'

He paused, trying to gauge the flat response from the room.

'The virus killed off many human families, leaving a lot of urban Pokémon to flee to the protection of the Wildlings.' The morph explained, 'I thought it might be worth offering a place for them to stay here if they so wish.'

Fenn was scribbling away again at her notepad again.

'More mouths to feed?' Insley leant forward to rest her elbows on the table, 'But we're struggling enough as it is. Are you considering the logistics of this? I don't think Fort Haste is in the position to give aid…'

'But the Wildlings did help us build the defences.' Bass pointed out, sipping from her mug,

'Not to mention to mention everything else.' Mike muttered, before speaking up. 'Ok I get that. Let's help the Wildlings out. I think it would be useful to have some Pokémon around, especially any fire types. Maybe even an electric Pokémon if we ever want some resemblance of an electric grid.'

'Have you got numbers to work with?' Bass asked in a calm tone, flashing Insley a dirty look. The cook just sulked, shaking her head. Although I didn't know what past impact the Wildlings had once had, it was clear that Fort Haste was somehow indebted to them. Not only that, but I guess it would be nice to have some Pokémon around.

Fenn mirrored that comment, 'I think it would do some good to have some Pokémon around. It'll keep the kids happy and liven the place up a little.'

Nodding to herself, she took the next few moments to scribble her thoughts down. Orion took that moment to fish around in his jacket pocket. Yanking out a piece of crumpled paper, the man took considerable time to flatten out the creases. For a long moment I simply watched, what with everyone else being absorbed in their own thoughts. Orion seemed to have some kind of list formed of messy block capitals. It looked like it had been written by a child.

I could see Jane have difficulty subtly reading the text from the corner of her eye.

'You got a list?' Fenn asked, taking a moment to look up from her pad. Semi distracted by Mike's attempted to fix the dripping urn in the centre of the table, Orion finally passed the note over. I got the impression he was struggling to read the writing.

Fenn's eyes scanned over the page.

'So that's roughly twenty-two in total? Most of them were older normal types, although three…

'From the old fire department.' Orion filled in, 'We've also got a plucky Growlithe from the old Police force who seemed very keen to help out. Sound about right?'

The question was directed at Hauser who squinted over at the paper.

 _'I was led to believe that your parents wanted to come along as well?'_

Everyone stopped.

The sound of Jane's mug clattering down broke the silence. Even I had been holding my breath. Orion's face dropped, blood seeping from his cheeks before he groaned. Covering his face with a hand, he rubbed at his hair. The Umbreon ears that adorned his head had drooped significantly, and the man stole a cold look at the Lucario.

You could have heard a pin drop. Everyone had their eyes fixed on the leader of Fort Haste. The pen in Fenn's hand has snapped down the middle, though she seemed unaware of her grip.

The girl spoke raggedly,

'You're parent's survived?!' It was as much an accusation as a question.

Orion was visibly shaking, his eyes darting around each member of the chain in turn.

'Orion! You never told us…us about your parents!' Bass nearly squeaked. Of all those in the room, only Mike appeared to be taking the situation calmly.

The virus had less of an effect the younger you were. No adults had survived, with only those roughly below seventeen had a slim chance on not being affected. Orion looked older than that but it was clear he wasn't much over eighteen. Of everything that had happened, we had all lost our families and our homes. It seemed unfair somehow that the man hadn't lost the same things I had. Jealousy began to develop in the depth of my stomach.

'Eon knew this was going to happen eventually.' Orion muttered, visibly pulling himself together. Hauser was wincing. I guess that he could feel every single emotion bouncing between the four walls at this point in time.

'You had to go and tell them?' The Umbreon-morph reiterated.

Hauser recovered quickly, poking a large paw towards the boy.

 _'That was something they should have known. You didn't think to tell them? Do they know anything?'_

The fact that they had shifted into a different language arose some suspicion. Only the calm voice of Fenn saved the day, though I could tell that is came through shackles. With a voice that was too flat, too controlled, she pointed out what we were all thinking.

'I think you have some explaining to do Orion.'

The morph was cornered. He just nodded, wringing his hands as he shrunk under everyone's gaze. His golden-ringed ears were pulled back and his tail was twitching in awkward motions as he attempted to steady himself.

'Well?' Insley demanded, too impatient to watch the man suffer.

'I was adopted when I was younger…too young to remember…' Orion was struggling to speak, covering his face again. When he finally lowered his hands, there were tears in the corners of his eyes.

'I was brought up by a pair of Leafeons. Well..' Orion's face screwed up, 'It's complicated. I had an Auntie and Uncle too which we stayed with. They were...humans. My adopted father Järn worked with my Uncle in Kanto Uni. We stayed with them for a long time…'

Orion trailed off. He struggled to form the words, taking deliberate pauses as if considering at each break to leave his story undefined. Maybe everyone else felt like I did - like we'd intruded into the his life somehow. I grew uncomfortable. But again the jealousy rose once more and the information sunk in slowly.

'So you were raised by Pokémon?' Fenn asked quietly. Confusion was plastered across her face, 'For how long? I thought you came from Sinnoh?'

Orion nodded as if to himself, his eyes a world away. A lot could be said about his eyes, for they seemed to shift and change faster than could be expressed elsewhere. The faintly red orbs hid the world in their depths - even now as they seemed to emit only half-truths. Orion saw everyone at once.

'For bre considerable amount of time.'

Insley slammed a hand down onto the table making everyone jump. Even Hauser bounced out of his seat.

'You can't just keep giving us vague answers and hoping we'll swallow them! First you say that you're parents survived and now you're telling us their Leafeons? And...And after trying to convince us that this ancient Lucario is a member of Vetra? What the fook? Shite Orion! This isn't some fookin' game.'

'Seriously Orion.' Mike backed Insley up in his gruff voice, 'I know Insley has a temper but she's right.'

'Of course I'm…'

Insley was forced to back-off form Fenn's cold stare. The second in command was the only member of the Chain that seemed the tiniest bit in control of the situation. Placing her broken pen down, she laid her arms down on the table gently. It was almost as if she was reaching out across the man.

'Orion. I know it's going to be hard. But you need to explain as much as you can. Do it now and you won't need to do it again. Nothing with leave these walls.'

Fenn took a moment to look at us each in turn. There were mumbled of agreement, and I nodded quietly when her eyes met mine.

'Right.' The Umbreon's voice wasn't much above a whisper.

Of everything that could have happened next, I didn't expect for him to get up into his feet. Kicking his chair out the way, I almost expected him to walk out. Instead, his maroon eyes darted around the room.

'You got any chalk or something?' Orion seemed to ask the question out loud, before directing it again towards Mike, 'Chalk?'

The teenager shook his head, leaving Orion to lean over the table and grab Fenn's half-broken pen. Turning it round his fingers for a moment, everyone seemed unsure of what was going to happen next. Orion flashed a sheepish smile. It was then that he turned to the wall behind him. Deftly, a rough map of Fort Haste started to form on the white wall from a few pen stokes.

'What are you doing?' Jane asked, seeming to have overcome her shock.

I too was trying to make out the purpose of the sketches coming to life. A few words started to appear, though in that childlike scrawl and wonky lettering. Was the man that bad? This continued for another minutes before (after applying a few finishing touches) the Umbreon stood back to admire his work.

'Please tell me you didn't just ruin that wall for nothing…' Fenn moaned, rubbing at her temples. Leaning back on her chair, my eyes flickered between the girl and Orion. Both seemed to be in a deadlock. It was clear that Fenn was worried for the man. Even being here a few days, I knew this show was very unlike him.

During the fiasco, the man's empty hot chocolate mug had been knocked over.

Orion cleared his throat.

'I'm going to run through a hell of a lot of stuff right now.' He announced, 'You want to know everything. So here it is.'

The man gathered himself, not seeming to care if the others were paying attention of not. Only the Lucario seemed to be avoiding the wall, instead watching Orion slowly. Nobody else seemed to notice and so I focused on the lecture to come. If anything, at least I too would now know the story.

Fenn was eyeing her watch.

'This is Fort Haste.'

Orion moved his pen like one of those old laser-pointers. He didn't seem aware of the fact that the biro didn't cast anything of the like.

'The virus appeared in the middle of March. Things deteriorated pretty quickly as for whatever reason, the disease could not be contained. I picked you guys up during the first week of April and Fort Haste was built within the next two months. That brings us up to present - the end of October.'

Orion paused, pulling at the collar of his shirt.

'Before this time,' He explained, 'I lived with my aunt and uncle. I say my parents were Leafeons, but they adopted me when I was little. I wasn't your normal child...' The man trailed off, running a hand through his hair, 'How do I say this? Ummm…'

'This isn't making any sense Orion.' Fenn pointed out.

'I know!' He screwed his eyes, rubbing at the bridge of his nose. 'It's complicated. I was infected really early on with the virus and can't remember much before. They cared for me before the outbreak and…'

'Wait. You had the virus before the outbreak?' Jane looked over her glasses, pushing her black hair out her eyes. 'I didn't think it even existed before. People knew about the disease before the outbreak?'

Orion rolled his shoulder.

'It must have existed for some time before. I don't know.'

It was a lame excuse, but the leader of the Chain used the sudden lull to jump forward with his presentation. It was clear that even now, he was trying to avoid the topic.

'So we have Fort Haste. We all know why but was chosen - mostly based on location. Defences circle an old farmstead with access to hundreds of kilometres of quality land that surrounds the camp. To the south we have woodland, giving us the potential of logging. Towards the south-west and round to the north we have acre-upon-acre of flat floodplains with great grazing. Meanwhile, the east is dominated by arable land with well-drained rolling hills. Not only this, but we have a large town ten miles down the road useful for scavenging.'

Orion spoke in a monotone voice that displayed little emotion. I had experienced many lecturers in the past and this man could fit in at any school or college. Moving the pencil around in his hand, he still seemed unaware that no laser light touched the walls. Only the midday sunlight cast odd shadows across the lucid sketch.

'As far as we know, the virus can now only be transmitted by direct contact. We have a population of one hundred and seventy four at the last count. As far as we're aware, we're the last population centre within a hundred miles.'

The Umbreon-morph heaved a sigh, eyes scanning across the image.

'Survival is solely a matter of maintaining a healthy population isolated from Ferals. Defences provide protection from rogue Ferals, while health is a matter of food, water, and healthcare. Assuming a short winter and good foraging, next year will be fine. However. Given any worst-case scenario, well, we don't stand a chance with the stocks we currently…'

'Wait a minute!' Insley interrupted, 'Are you trying to say that we're going to run out of food?'

Orion froze, his long ears perking up at the interruption. After a small pause, he nodded slowly. 'Yeah pretty much. We won't make it into late spring at the current rate of consumption. Which is why building trust with bre Wildlings is so important. And why the disappearance of the guys at Berry Hill is so worrying.'

There were a few grumbles at that information, most of which seemed to come from Mike. The teenager was running a hand across his face before massaging his temples.

'And you didn't think to tell us this?' Mike asked, placing his half empty mug of hot chocolate down.

For some reason Orion was swaying slightly, as if struggling to get his balance. It didn't take long to put two and two together. Remembering that I'd seen Fenn slip something into the man's drink, I shot her a quick look. The second in command was sending worried glances around the room. Out eyes met and she quickly averted her gaze. Unaware, Orion continued his explanation.

'The plan was to make friends with those up at the old camp after they made off with the remainder of the supplies we needed. It didn't matter too much because we always knew that-'

'You always knew that…' Insley mumbled loudly under her breath. Orion didn't skip a beat.

'-the stocks were there umbre Berry Hill. Bre had planned to befriend them...which obviously didn't go as bre planned.

The Umbreon shuddered slightly at that thought. It was Hauser that filled in the rest of the information.

 _'That food was gone yesterday.'_ The aging Lucario shared with the Chain. ' _Which suggests that either they left with the food, or somebody else took it from them.'_

'So if somebody was going to attack Berry Hill, then they wanted food.' Mike thought out loud, grumbling a little as he adjusted himself in his chair. His wax coat was starting to smell in the warmth. 'It sounds like we have humans that are able to control Ferals.'

The statement seemed to fizzle in the air.

'There's no proof of that.' Bass countered, 'This seems like a lot of ifs and buts.'

'Not to mention Orion skipped over the fact that he was infected _before_ the outbreak.' Insley agreed, turning to look at Jane and then Fenn for backup. Neither wanted to comment. Fenn was still watching Orion from the corner of her eye.

'So this is all theory.' Bass affirmed.

 _'For now we can only guess. Ferals make an illogical weapon.'_ Hauser intoned, rubbing at the fur on his chest with large paws.

Insley had to break the calm as she sounded out what everyone was thinking.

'So we're fookin' screwed then? You're saying that some food has mysteriously disappeared along with the guys on Berry Hill. They were dicks so we can let that slip. But now you're saying that there are Ferals gathering…

'And we have evidence that someone is sticking stakes in them.' Mike added.

'Yeah. Add to that the fact that you LIED about our food stocks!' Insley snapped, slamming a fist on the table. It shook slightly, the urn rattling.

'Calm down Insley.' Fenn scolded the teenager, 'Let's try and think this through before we start accusing people.'

Insley crossed her arms and pouted. It didn't last long before she was glaring at Orion however. The latter didn't pay much heed. In fact, the Umbreon morph was now leaning heavily on the back of Mike's chair. Some colour had dissipated from his face.

'Whether or not we've been _misled_.' Mike emphasized, 'It's clear that something it going on. The Feral spiders indicate that.'

Orion slid himself wearily back into his chair.

All of this time my mind had been spinning. So much seemed to be happened at once and having only just arrived at Fort Haste, only about twenty percent made any sense. But it didn't seem right that the Chain were starting to bicker about it. It was clear that everyone was terrified on the situation, had no clue what was going on, or what to do next. But we were all trying to hide it. Underlying it all was a deep anger at their situation and a need to blame anyone or anything for it. All that anger was slowly and steadily starting to be focused on Orion.

Only Hauser seemed to be thinking with a clear head. His eyes met mine and the greying Lucario nodded.

I cleared my throat, tail twitching behind my chair.

'I'd like to say something if you don't mind.'

Out of everyone in the chain, it was only Fenn who agreed. Orion perked up a little though his eyes told a different story. Jane and Bass were talking in hushed tones. Hauser smoothed down his fur again and I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

'I know things aren't looking that great at the moment. But you can't lose sight of what you have here.'

My voice came out in bursts and I calmed myself. Why was this so hard?

'I'm not originally from Kanto. I was travelling here as a trainer when the virus struck. I'd been training in a forest at the time to the north, and by the time I returned to a Viridian city everyone was...was…'

The emotions came rushing back and I fought them back. I was all too aware of everyone's attention now focused on me. Tear collected about my eyes but I stopped myself pawing at them.

'That was tough. Everyone was dead. So I went looking for survivors. The Ferals were everywhere and my...my team wasn't strong enough. I lost two of them befo…'

Why was my voice cracking like this? It was like I could barely breathe.

'You don't have to tell us if you don't want to Matt.' Fenn said quietly. Bass nodded at the comment and for a moment I felt like giving up. Something at the back of my mind pushed me to continue. Steadying my voice took a moment. A comforting paw from Hauser on my knee was all I needed. The Lucario offered me a small smile which was a struggle across his canine muzzle.

'The point is.' I tried again, 'That we need Fort Haste. It's tough here and the future is not going to be easy - but it's going to a be a hell of a lot better than going at it alone. I don't know the full background or anything, but we need to…'

There was a loud whistle call suddenly and we all jumped.

The high-pitched squeal seemed to hang in the air before the message was repeated again. My ears knew the sounds but not well enough to decipher what they meant.

The Chain all cursed in their own way, Insley yelling the words loudly as she pushed herself to her feet. Hauser closed his eyes and for a moment the aura sensors on the back of his head rose hauntingly in mid-air. Twitching his ears, he spoke via aura to those in the room just as Orion was struggling to get out of his own chair.

 _'There are three Ferals approaching from the south-east. A Rhyhorn and two Tauros. They seem to be considering whether to attack.'_

Mike thanked the Lucario, getting up to grip onto a unsteady Orion. The Umbreon-morph was making his way out of the door but always appeared drunk. He wobbled, almost tripping before the mechanic saved him.

'You alright mate?' Mike asked, squinting at the Leader of Fort Haste.

'I'll have a look at him.' Fenn jumped at the opportunity, but Orion batted her away with a hand.

'I'm fine breon.'

Bass and Jane squeezed past, 'We'll take out positions.' Insley followed. I ran a hand across my face and tried to steady my beating heart. How often did these Feral attacks occur? As if reading my mind (which he probably was) Hauser once more offered a toothy grin,

 _'It is only those three.'_ Hauser spoke softly in our minds, before adding 'They are afraid.'

I wasn't sure whether he was referring the Ferals, of the Hasties that were leaving the room. Either way, it took a long moment to steady myself. Having a huge twitching leaf for a tail wasn't helping.

Orion had made his way out of the door, with Mike agreeing to help the man. Fenn's dark expression told a whole new story. Watching the two teenagers leave, she slid her notebook with a huff. Eyeing Hauser and I critically, she waved us back into our seats. Reaching down to grab a large tome book form the floor, she then filled up another mug of hot chocolate with remarkable speed.

Outside more whistle calls sounded through the window. The door slammed downstairs.

Fenn stirred the mug quickly before nearly throwing the spoon down onto the table.

'I need to talk to you two about Orion.' She stated, warming her hands on the porcelain.

'Why us?' The question seemed reasonable until I said it. I was unsure why she was asking us this question now, let alone in the first place. My sensitive ears picked up the activity outside. Someone was yelling to fetch rifles.

Fenn just sighed loudly.

'I need a second opinion. I don't know much about either of you...but by the looks of it you are now both Hasties.' It was clear that Fenn wasn't so keen on the fact. The teenager looked Hauser up and down for a second before continuing, 'I think Orion trusts you, Matt, because you have gone through the same things he has. I think he'll talk to you about things he won't with anybody else.'

She then lifted her gaze to Hauser, meeting his red eyes.

'And I know that you know more about the man than we do. If Orion won't explain his past, then maybe you can elucidate it for us?'

Outside the window the kids were coming to attention. A company of teenagers with bows were stringing their weapons while a pair took turns distributing arrows. Through the dust planes I could just make out Orion talking with what appeared to be Jeff. The man had his hands in his pockets, though was leaning heavily against a palisade support. Clouds of mist hung in the air as clouds formed from their breath.

It felt like a different world inside.

Hauser and I sat in silence as Fenn picked up her silver teaspoon once more and began stirring her hot chocolate. After moment she drained the top inch of liquid before setting the mug down heavily.

'Look. I don't know the best way to say this. Things have been getting really weird here as of late.' Fenn paused,

She spoke in a horse whisper. It was as if she was afraid of the very conclusion she had drawn.

'I think Orion's going crazy.'

* * *

XXX

* * *

[ **4.53** ] Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here (1975)

Did they get you to trade

Your heroes for ghosts?

Hot ashes for trees?

Hot air for a cool breeze?

Cold comfort for change?

Did you exchange

A walk on part in the war

For a lead role in a cage?

* * *

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any events, location, and/or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. The views expressed by the characters and/or the narratives do not necessarily reflect the author's views. This fiction is rated T and may be unsuitable for young audiences. 'Fort Haste' is a fictional concept that is owned and regulated by ZenColour. Viewer discretion is advised_

[Edit 24/03/19 to correct a few stupid mistakes!]


	6. Chapter 5

FH:WINTER

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"Fort Haste: WINTER" is a recount of a tale set within the Pokémon world - one in which everything has gone wrong. Here we meet the final survivors as they struggle to endure through hell and beyond. An unknown virus has wiped-out most of humanity, leaving behind children which seem to be less affected by the disease. In an attempt to preserve what remains of humanity, Fort Haste was bodged in the months following the pandemic. Even now, the settlement remains at the very heart of the ongoing apocalypse. For everything that has happened and all the trials humanity has faced - Fort Haste stands as a vision of hope.

Please note, this and following chapters will contain both narrative and speech in various dialects and languages. Anything said in Pokémon will be underlined as shown. Normal speech will remain unaffected, although _italics_ and **bold** may be used for effect following standard rules. For whistle calls ***…something like this…*** will be used, and any random flashbacks are marked with {''}.

Fort Haste is a work of fiction written as a collaboration between ZenColour and Just-A-Reader0Love. Both are also very thankful for the additional help from Oblivion Wave Productions as our very own beta reader.

* * *

AUTHOR NOTES

* * *

Zen: _Apologies for the delay on this beast of a chapter (~26 ka!). Things have been slow with prior commitments over the past few weeks, through the three of us have been working on a schedule to get a (shorter) chapter out monthly starting in the summer. We've been planning ahead and making sure everything is as streamlined as it can be. There may be patches from this point on where things get close to the M line, but this will remain a T rated fic._

R'Love: _Same as what Zen said, sorry for taking so long. It does take a while to proofread and make sure that everything is a ok for reading when it gets time to post a new chapter of this. Not to mention that life gets in the way. This version of this chapter is also different from the first time around, ending a bit differently as well. All in all, it was fun to work with this._ _ **From this point onwards, the chapters themselves will really begin to change from the first attempt of writing fort haste.**_ _:)_ _ **Also, viewer discretion is advised for this chapter in particular as it gets pretty messed up.**_

* * *

 **HAYS SNH Version 6 (0084 PA)**

Forward written by A. Good and F. I. Shostakovich [EXTRACT]

9000406227032 - Sinnoh Outreach Programme for Historical Preservation

 _Kanto was hit the hardest of all regions. Research suggests that a dispersed population within a predominantly rural location meant that containment zonation failed. If the virus was indeed carried by Pokémon, then a dense wild Pokémon population would spread the virus much more quickly. Isolated communities were thought to have survived in Johto for a number of months, but ultimately collapsed into anarchy during the harsh winter that followed._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 5**

* * *

 **-SIDE A-**

* * *

An excerpt from 'Hays' Journals' I.V

 _Life is the most profound when it appears the most crazy_

* * *

FENN's POV

* * *

Well. It could have been worse.

Orion hadn't been outside long when the drugs finally kicked in. I'd taken the rather controversial decision to dope his hot chocolate with zaleplon before the meeting. Nobody knew how long it would take to have an effect. Though, Jane had read the tablet pamphlet multiple times through her wide-rimmed glasses. At first the Umbreon-morph seemed unaffected, only acting slightly out of character during the extent of the meeting.

Then came the Feral alarm.

I'd put the rest down to a mix of adrenaline, cold air, and real fatigue - a nasty combination that let the drugs kick in. If I hadn't liaised with both Jeff and Mike beforehand, things could have gone a lot differently. Orion didn't give much warning before he slumped and was out stone cold. Jane almost jumped in to start performing CPR.

All that left was for Mike to half drag, half carry Orion back into the warmth of the farmhouse. The two of us had managed to get him upstairs. Roughly manhandling the morph into his bed wasn't something I had expected to be doing. Nonetheless, we managed. Mike took a step back to catch his breath. Wiping away the sweat from his face achieved little but to smudge dirt across his pale forehead. It gave me a few moments tuck the duvet over the leader of Fort Haste.

Straightening, I could already feel bruised muscle in my lower back. I sighed heavily before turning the mechanic.

'I'm assuming that was just a false alarm with the Ferals?'

Mike gave one last long look at Orion before turning to me slowly. A thin veneer of grime was smeared across one cheek and the teenager rubbed at it absentmindedly.

'Yeah. Thank God. The beasties seemed happy to skirt around us, even if they did take their sweet time. Makes a difference from fookin' suicidal spiders. Not to sound ungrateful or anything...'

Mike massaged the muscles on his shoulders. The exercise of dragging Orion's limp body had brought a red flush to his cheeks. Kicking off muddied boots, he wiggled his toes in his thick walking socks. The silence that followed dropped the atmosphere into sullen awkwardness. I could feel the elephant in the room weighing on both of our minds. Neither wanted to open the discussion itching to be articulated.

'Do you think he's going to be ok?' Mike asked at last.

The teenager ran a hand through his red hair, a combination of engine oil and sweat leaving a large cowlick. 'I know we talked about this and all agreed on it...But those pills knocked him out proper. Didn't you notice how loopy he was near the end? That didn't seem like the Orion I know.'

I sighed, unsure of how to respond. Honestly, I didn't know how those sleeping pills were going to affect the man. All we had hoped to do was force Orion to yield to his weariness and rest, giving his overworked body a chance to recover.

Rubbing at my temples seemed like an adult thing to do, but it didn't help at all. At a loss for words, I wearily gazed at Orion's sleeping form. The man was stretched out in bed, snoring softly. The idea had been to help the morph develop a sensible sleeping pattern. I didn't expect the drugs to knock him out like that on their own. I was rapidly losing my calm certainty that we'd done the right thing. Maybe the Umbreon side of Orion was allergic to the medicine designed for humans?

Mike interrupted the silence.

'Is Jane coming? I feel like she should check his pulse or something. It would put my mind at ease.'

'I'll call her up when he wakes.' I exhaled loudly, 'For now we'll let him rest.'

Orion's room was fairly cold, and I was tempted to get some more blankets to cover the sleeping Umbreon. Mike had made the call to leave him lying on his side in some mock-up of the recovery-position. That would help if he tried to vomit, or anything else equally unpleasant in his sleep. Neither of us wanted to take any risks before Jane had seen the man properly.

'This was a stupid idea wasn't it?' I asked under my breath.

Mike had been leaning at the door for a long time, reluctant to leave.

'Yeah.' He agreed, wrinkling his nose, 'It was. We'll just have to hope he takes the hint, catches up on a fortnight of missed sleep, and returns to normal. It's not like...well…' The teenager trailed off, fighting with the zip on with wax coat.

'What?' My breath fogged the air slightly. It was still chilly, even inside the house.

Mike grimaced, 'He couldn't be turning more into an Umbreon or anything could he? The virus did this to him right? Do you know if he'll turn...you know...?'

The teenager pulled his coat around him, too scared to utter the word _feral_ unless his prophecy came true. That very thought had crossed my mind numerous times, but never seemed to fit the jigsaw. It had been accepted that the virus sometimes gave people Pokémon-like appearances. We now had at least three separate cases for that hypothesis. However, Orion seemed like an outlier. I couldn't put my finger on why.

'Do you think it's all true?' Mike said after taking a long breath. He was moving the door back and forth with a foot, leaving wet crumbs of mud over the floorboards. There was a hint of uncertainty that I'd never seen in his eyes before. Then again, we'd only been told a few minutes earlier by our very own leader that Fort Haste wouldn't make it through the winter.

At times like this, Mike wasn't one for embellishing on his emotions. Then again, I'd never seen him upset.

'I really don't know Mike. I think it might be…' I turned to study Orion's sleeping form. His face had relaxed and for once it looked like the half-Umbreon half-human was at peace. 'There's something strange going on. Nothing is adding up quite right.'

'We don't stand a chance do we? This was a folly from the start.' Mike forced out the words, denial seeping into his voice. 'Fort Haste was doomed to fail.'

'Come on Mike!' I tried to lighten my voice a little. It was difficult to lift the mood whilst scolding the teenager at the same time. 'You think we can just give up? We've survived this long. We have no _choice_ but to keep fighting.'

The boy stared at me solidly and a little intimidatingly in his oversized wax jacket. There was a hard look in his eyes which stared into the distance. At last his eyes refocused,

'Maybe you're right.' Mike admitted, although he didn't seem to believe his own words. 'We can only do what we can.'

'It would take an army of Ferals to take out Fort Haste. And like that would ever happen.'

'I really hope you didn't just jinx it.' Mike added with a weak chuckle. It was all he could manage for my attempt at humour. 'Right. I better get going. Fort Haste doesn't run itself.' Mike excused himself, giving one last long look at the leader of our little camp.

I found a blanket for Orion and tucked the morph into bed with more attention that I'd like to admit. Previously, I had been unaware of just how skinny the man was, nor how he naturally curled up under the covers of his bed in a way that was more animalistic than human. Orion was mumbling in his sleep in what appeared to be the Pokémon speech. His lips twitched as he tossed momentarily, seeming to shrink under the covers.

The day continued on like it always did in Fort Haste.

Too much to do and never enough time to do it.

Leaving Orion to sleep for the remainder of the day, I threw myself into an hour of admin before heading over to help out with the kitchens. It was the warmest place in Fort Haste and often the most crowded. Keeping myself busy delayed the inevitable, but I still couldn't bring myself to face the reality of the situation. I had always been the type of person to throw myself into work when I wanted to forget something. Insley had also gravitated toward the kitchens, organizing the saucepans and cleaning them with startling intensity. Of all things! Neither of us talked much apart to comment on the cold. James hung round doing little else but bothering the two of us. After realizing that neither could even spare the thought to scold the kid, he sort of gave up.

Word about Orion had spread through the camp like wildfire. Not wanted to hide the truth, Jane and I had come up with the convincing lie that the man had taken sleeping pills. Well, he did. Just not voluntarily. In all fairness, the kids invented so many wacky stories and counter-plots that we were happy to play along with their wild imaginations. Making light of the situation added a level of drama to Fort Haste that made it easy to forget about the gravity of our situations. Orion was ill. That didn't mean much when there was so much work to do.

The table marked aside for the Chain lacked any mirth that suppertime. Each of us refused to bring up the conversation at the front of our minds.

Matt had simply sat with his head down, he ears drooped sadly as he pushed food round his plate. If the others had a tail to hang limply, I think we all would have looked the same as the once-upon-a-time Pokémon trainer. Bass and Mike were in conversation about something, but I wasn't in the mood to join in. Insley hadn't even joined us, preferring instead to stick to the kitchens where she was solely in charge.

Orion was still asleep when I checked on him one last time before bed. Jane had left a small glass of water besides his bed, as well as drawing the curtains firmly. A single candle had been left burning on the bulky chest of draws with the hopes that the light would stop any nocturnal tendencies the Umbreon-morph possessed.

I slept poorly that night.

Matt didn't even sleep at all. Strangely, he appeared to be the most upset out of all of us. The floorboards from the floor above creaked as he seemed to pace the room. Jane had diagnosed the teenager with SAD only a few days ago, blaming the condition of the natural grass-type that the boy had now become. The lack of sunlight was driving the former trainer into a permanent state of fatigue. When he wasn't sleeping, he was mooching about in a half daze. He still did his part, but barely. Sentry duty was better for the boy, but he still struggled to stay focused. Bass was the only one able to lift the boy's spirit. She'd got the morph involved with some craft projects. I was still worried for the boy.

Orion woke only once, just before lunch. During the lucid moment he seemed like a man possessed, behaving more like an Pokémon than a human being. Each time I perched on the edge of the bed he would come over, pushing his face up closer and curling round me gently. The motion was protective, though the man seemed unaware of his actions. It was like having a kitten lying on your lap and I struggled to drag myself away. How could I tell the man that Jane had diagnosed him with some kind of weird dissociative disorder, as well as anxiety. In truth, I had no idea what the former meant.

The third day was a real struggle.

Orion awoke once more, but hadn't yet seemed to break out of his Umbreon-like behaviours. He barely ate, only drinking when I stuck a bowl of water under his nose. Much like the Pokémon whose features he shared, the boy lapped up the liquid gently. Upon returning around midday I found him lying on the floor beneath the locked window, breathing heavily. His rings were glowing brightly, so much so that they were hard to look at directly.

Having abandoned the warmth of his bed, it was only a few minutes later that I found out why. I'm surprised I didn't notice sooner. The smell of feces might have gave it away. Apparently locking Orion up in his room wasn't such a good idea after all. After replacing the sheets and finding some plastic to cover the mattress in case the same happened again, I woke the Umbreon. Still under the effects of the medication, he only stayed sane long enough for me to clean him and brush down his fur carefully.

Jane had a list of symptoms which she studied it meticulously, running through potential issues with the man. The sleeping pills should have worked out of his system days ago. Orion still behaved as if under the influence - completely lost to himself and the world. I could only hope that he didn't respond to all medication like this.

Steadily the possibility that Orion wasn't going to recover starting creeping up on us.

I didn't know what to do anymore.

Orion's eyes had morphed into a blood red gaze that lacked any sensitivity. A cold stare that turned into a fierce growl when Mike turned up to visit. The morph had pulled himself out of bed, fur on end and tail lashing in the air aggressively as if to scare away the teenager. I didn't know who was more offended, Mike or Orion. I alone seemed capable of calming the morph, although later experimentation found that Matt also had a similar effect. The Leafeon-morph explained that Orion's Pokémon babble was incoherent even to him. When I was there, Orion would brighten briefly and almost return to his former self. It was like a fire had been lit inside. But it never lasted long. The man no longer slept on his bed, instead choosing to curl up next to the door as if waiting my next arrival. Each time I entered, usually over a dozen times a day, he became clingy. Curling against me, Orion would whine each time I went to leave.

I was struggling to hold myself together.

It had already been four days and I couldn't bear it anymore. Even Mike was starting to give me dirty looks, not to mention Insley and even Bass! It had been my suggestion and now I was facing the consequences. Thankfully angriness wasn't in Mike's nature, but his aura of disappointment was even worse.

Hauser had offered his advice and council. But just like the others, Orion freaked out when the Pokémon entered. I never expected for the boy to growl nor yowl as loudly as he did. We got the point fairly quickly. After a few tries the aged Lucario gave up trying, promising to help solve the mystery remotely. In all fairness, I didn't really trust Hauser at face value. The sudden appearance of the Pokémon was a little too coincidental. My nerves only started to dissipate when Jane explained how much of a help the steel-type had been in the medical ward.

The two had teamed up to solve the enigma that Orion had quickly become. As a result, both seemed to being doing their utmost to avoid me.

In fact, nearly everyone was. Even James.

After organizing with the rest of the Chain a secluded evening, I did my best to shower the morph. With the rest of camp occupied with a theatre-night, mainly to ease tension from the previous close call with Ferals, I snuck Orion under the cover of darkness into the shower block. It was nerve-racking at first, but Orion seemed to be more than happy to be dragged outside. With his tail wagging wildly, he followed close behind me like some well-trained animal. He didn't notice the tears as I washed him down and dressed him in a fresh pair of clothes that didn't stink of sweat and urine.

I knew things were always getting worse, but Orion's sudden loss of humanity was as unsettling as it was terrifying. Any hope of a rapid recovery was quickly fading as I found my doubts more and more difficult to silence.

It was then that I had an idea.

Well I call it that, it was in truth an act of desperation. Either that or madness, it didn't matter at this point. Anything to bring Orion back and fill the hole in my chest. Just knowing that everything was my fault was eating into my very bones. The warm but vacant expression in Orion's eyes hurt more than anything had ever done before.

Our very own resident Lucario still managed to remain elusive. Hauser had fitted into the Fort Haste routine with ease, choosing to work closely either teaching first aid with Jane and some of the older teenagers, or training in the K'field with Jeff. At mealtimes, the Lucario would eat quickly with the Chain before excusing himself and joining in with sentry duty. At any other time, I would have really appreciated the obvious commitment Hauser was displaying in helping Fort Haste. But I was overworked, overtired, and too anxious to be anything but paranoid. To me, it was as if he was trying to make himself scarce.

Time dragged as I completed my chores robotically, mind too exhausted to put my heart into anything.

It was nearly by accident that I finally managed to corner the Lucario.

Hauser had been running an errand for Insley at the time. The two had got on rather well, with the aged Pokémon rapidly picking up on the teenager's blunt humour. Tasked with grabbing a few more kitchen supplies from the library storeroom, the Lucario had been to forced to seek me out. There were a limited number of keys to the downstairs room, so it wasn't out of the ordinary. That didn't stop my mouth from dropping open in surprise when the Pokémon shuffled into the meeting room. Having been elbow-deep in records of our food consumption, I jumped at the sudden disturbance.

A black mask of fur decorated the muzzle of the Pokémon who looked at me a little shamefully with his dark red eyes. Grey hairs flecked an otherwise pristine coat. His fur was puffed up, protecting the Pokémon from the cold. If I hadn't felt a natural disdain for the Lucario, he might have looked kind of cute.

'Hauser. Finally...We need to talk.'

Keeping the aggression, or was it desperation, out of my voice was difficult, but I managed.

' _Of course…'_ Hauser seemed a little unsure of himself. Rubbing at the fur on his chest, he brushed himself off with marked awkwardness. It was a while before he replied. ' _First of all, I've been asked to pick something up for Insley. Maybe afterwards…?_ '

He trailed off but I waved away his worry,

'Yeah it's fine Hauser. We'll sort that out.'

The Lucario was watching me expectantly. Matt had explained how the Pokémon was able to read the emotions of others, even going as far as seeing the future moves of others in battle. I'd put it down to exaggeration like everything else you saw in the movies. Then again, the ancient Lucario was supposedly a member of Vetra. What did it matter? So much had gone to shit in the world, I was starting to believe that anything was possible.

' _Uh Fenn?'_

I tried to make light of the fact I'd spent the last minute staring emptily at a wall.

Clearing my throat and I threw myself down the buneary hole.

'It's about Orion. I think we need your help.'

'Orion?' Hauser verified, his left eye twitching, 'What for?'

I explained my plan as briefly as I could, the Lucario nodding slowly.

And that's where it all started.

Insley had once again demanded another few kitchen knives and some peelers. Hauser told me it was to make preparing dinner easier - though I guessed it was an attempt to get more children into the warmth of the kitchens. The cold was like a cloud that seeped in the very fabric of Fort Haste. Helping prepare dinner was a cheap but effective excuse to get more kids somewhere they didn't need to shiver for warmth.

A few impatient hours later and Hauser returned to the farm house smelling distinctively of potatoes. I had to laugh at the flour mingled in with his fur. He looked more white than grey now, brushing away the years as he combed through his tufty fur. Overly large steel-tipped paws weren't well made for pulling baking materials out of his coat.

Already I had talked myself out of my plan, back into it, and then decided against it once more. I had hoped Hauser would put these worries to rest. Instead, he seemed intent on doing the opposite.

Orion's room suddenly felt very claustrophobic.

 _'I must warn you,'_ The Lucario spoke gently. _'Things may be hard to grasp. I don't fully agree with what you're asking...but even I'm starting to get very worried now.'_

He rubbed at his nose,

' _We are going through the aura of his past. You may see things differently to what you normally would. When you visit someone's aura you're not seeing memories strictly. Still. Just make sure they don't consume you. In the event that that begins to happen...we'll worry about it later.'_

He paused, looking at me wistfully.

 _'I cannot say what we will find. It may not be pleasant. Are you sure about this?_ '

I nodded my head immediately, hoping that the show of willingness would hide the strong river of doubt flowing through me. To say I wasn't scared was a lie, though "terror" would be more descriptive. This wasn't a good idea. But sometimes you had to do stupid things for the right reasons. Yet another one of Fenn's stupid mistakes to add to the list. Great.

Hauser managed to lift an eyebrow, the black mask-like fur covering his snout now looked menacing.

' _You understand? Good. You will be piggybacking on my own aura and won't be in contact with his mind directly. In and out alright? We're going to find out what the problem is...not fishing around in his past.'_

Did I understand? No. But it was a stupid idea to try and lie to a Pokémon who could read your mind. I reddened upon realizing this fact and choked on my tongue as I tried to add further explanation to the situation. Hauser simply interrupted anyway.

' _You still sure about this?_ '

'YES' I growled, giving the Pokémon a flat look.

We made eye contact and in that instant I realised that Hauser let very little slip past his judgement. You didn't need to be a mind reader to see the battle inside of me. The Pokémon was giving me the easy way out but I was too prideful to accept it.

I wondered if I would ever regret this decision

Hauser smoothed his fur down gently before turning to Orion. The Umbreon-morph was curled up on his bed, breathing softly. I was scared that he would have woken with the two of us chatting. Instead Orion seemed to twitch and turn, golden rings faintly illuminating the dark room. He'd been doing that a lot recently. The morph had his tail wrapped around him, his ears resting haphazardly against his head. A few weeks ago and I would have thought the position cute. Now it meant something completely different.

Hauser perched on the edge of the bed. I had prepared two chairs and gently placed them down next to the mattress. The Lucario took one gratefully, before motioning me into the spare.

' _Sit. We need to have contact._ '

His glowing red eyes watched me steadily,

' _I will be reading his aura. What you will see is what I project from my mind into your own. Understand?_ '

I nodded,

Hauser still felt the need to reiterate,

 _'You will not be within his aura, only I will. Please remember this.'_

I nodded again, a little fearful of both the Pokémon in front of me and what he would be attempting. I'd never even heard of this being possible until a few days ago. If I didn't know any better, this would play out just like the second Vetra movie. Things turned out badly for the team of heros. To say that it caused a few nightmares would be an understatement - though perhaps that was because I was barely ten at the time. What would it even feel like to be thrown into Orion's mind?

With a deep breath, I reached out and took Hauser's paw.

I tried to breath but I wasn't able to.

The last thing I saw of reality was Hauser's blood red eyes, a cast of utter calm upon a backdrop of blue on black. his fur rippled like grass, a sea of diamonds which cascaded into vertigo. Endlessly, I seemed to fall into those eyes - sinking away into a abstract mural of nothingness.

My thoughts no longer seemed to be my own.

Silence

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

I collapsed onto the floor, panting like hell.

'Come on Orion…' My ears twitched at the voice, body crying out to respond to the command. However, my eyes were closed even as I fought for each breath. My side stung with a firey pain and I whined in fear at the wound sliced across on my heel. It was a gash that seemed to reach bone in my mind. The blood was already congealing.

'Stay awake...please!' I heard Jenny begging of me.

Opening my eyes, I found her face mere inches away from my own. Backing off only made things worse as the joints in my shoulders ground like rock on sandpaper. Everything hurt as I felt my vision grow dark. Making sense of the protective barrier between us took time.

What just happened?

I could almost see her tears through the reinforced perspex

'Hurts…' I muttered through the pain. 'Je...Hurts…'

'I know Orion, hold on.' Jenny begged of me again, barely audible; 'It's ok...'

Some time passed in blackness rather than light. I felt myself being lifted up by a white-coated man and carried away. His face was concealed by a dust filter and eyes hidden by glasses, no emotion flickering through my moments of lucidity. His footsteps jarred the tightness across my body. Everything stung and I shut my eyes tightly, closing out reality with a flicker. Keeping track of time consisted of waiting in shadow. A rapture of utter satire. I seemed to fall into blackness.

For a second I remembered that this was not me. I was not this person. But as quickly as that thought came, it was gone again. Being consumed by the darkness was not an option, but I was swallowed whole.

A splitting headache followed.

Concrete.

I became aware of myself lying on the cell floor. Groaning, I felt the drugs in my system wearing off. With it returned reality and pain ricocheting through my body. A wash of scents wafted into my nose and with it the knowledge that I was back in my pen.

Forcing myself awake, I checked myself over with a practiced eye and rapid efficiency. There was a large bandage wrapped round my middle, covering the burn down my side and lower back. My leg was caked in dry blood. A row of neat stitches held together skin which was already meshing over. It would hurt even more when they have to remove them.

Superficially everything seemed recoverable and I let that thought comfort me for a few moments. Deep down I knew that with any other body, I should have been dead by now.

After pushing aside the numbing pain in my torso, I turned my attention to the cramped cell that we called home. My voice was only a whisper in the darkness.

'Mother?'

The Umbreon had been curled up against my side all along, her ears perking up as she heard my voice.

'How do you feel?' the Eeveelution asked, flicking a bit of straw from off her muzzle. They used the material as bedding, though it did little to keep us off the cold stone below. Pushing myself up a seated position, it was all I could do not to growl in frustration. My shock collar felt heavy and bulky against my neck.

'Better?' My mother asked again, prompting some form of response.

'I guess.' I muttered, 'At least it's a full moon.'

'And your one hundred and sixtieth one at that. That makes you nearly thirteen!' mother replied, now closing her eyes. Pushing myself into a crouch, I half limped towards the window. A combination of metal bars and glass hid the universe from my eyes, only a glimmer of light remained. The moon was large and was just in view, shining coldly upon my face.

I lay for hours, curled up in the light of the natural satellite. The straw wasn't as good as the old mattress I used to have. My back was sore as hell but it gradually merged into the numb pain that was my continual existence. Resting my head down on the bedding, I felt the warm body of my mother now curled up against me.

'It's going to be fine, little Moonrise.' I couldn't help but smile at the name my mother always called me.

'But what will Melissa do to me? I blacked out in that last…'

'Hush, morning will bring what it brings.'

I was always comforted by that comment. Knowing that there was little I was truly in control of. It was something I hated, but had come to accept. You could only do what you could. Melissa would decide what happens and I would have to do her bidding. That's what Pokémon like me did.

Right?

'Sleep Moonrise,' Mother murmured to me as I gradually closed my eyes.

I curled up tighter, mutterinly tiredly, 'Good night Mother.'

The Umbreon yawned loudly, snuggling up to my chest. I wrapped my tail around myself and sank my face into the black and yellow fur. The latter was faintly glowing with a golden light.

At least I'd always have her by my side.

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

Even now it was a struggle to fight my way out of that dark embrace. Things appeared to be latched, soldered, and glued to each other. The memoires a snare and fiddle. Makeshift music with neither tune nor conductor.

The cell door clicked and I looked up as it opened.

Melissa cast a long shadow across my pen. I trembled beneath her harsh glare. By now I'd learnt to cower before her, unless she decided that I wasn't truly committed to being her Pokémon. My Mother had sat up slightly, her eyes fixed on the appearance of my human trainer. Outwardly, the Umbreon appeared uncaring, a steeled expression which I tried to copy.

Jumping to my feet, it seemed useless attempting to remove the bits of straw clinging to my scruffy clothes. My trainer wouldn't care anyhow. The remote to my collar was clasped tightly in her hands.

'I trust you will do better today…' Melissa hissed, eyeing me up and down. She was probably still furious. But I wouldn't mess up today! I would show her.

I hung my head even lower and followed the woman through the door. Mother followed behind, speaking softly.

'Good luck'

'Thanks' I replied under my breath. Melissa seemed to smirk at this. In fact, she stopped for a moment as if she was going to say something. I cowered again, not wanting to raise my eyes unless to risk punishment. She told me it was tough love. I knew it for being the harsh master she was.

Thankfully, Melissa carried on and I trailed behind. Soon we were in the small room overlooking the area where my training took place.

Jenny was already there.

I felt drawn to her large almond eyes. Out of everybody, she was the one that cared for me. I'd always known her, and couldn't remember a time before the girl had been hanging around at the fringes of my life. Jenny was Melissa's daughter and thus by extension, also a superior. Yet she never behaved as such, even now as she watched me with a hauntingly silent expression of pity. I never got why she did that. Was I doing something wrong?

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

Aura was tumbling about us and it was hard to pull myself above the current. It was like a Hydropump to the stomach as I forced to keep my head above the current. Vaguely I was aware of Hauser but such a concept was swept away in the current. Nothing made sense anymore. The intensity of the experience was too strong. Turned double, vision twisted, and I was once again falling.

Orion's eyes failed to meet my own.

To be honest, he seemed to be looking better. However, I knew that the boy's true emotions were a different matter. Orion had rapidly learnt to hide his own thoughts and feelings with a hard exterior. That didn't mean that we couldn't hear him howling last night. The sounds had reverberated through the whole compound.

The fact that he'd started the habit once more made me worry. Sometimes Orion would fall into a state when he completely lost his human side - behaving very much the Umbreon he was trained to be. The first time it happened I'd feared Mother had broken the poor boy. By now we'd learnt to wait it out. In a few days the boy would steadily recover his sanity as if nothing had happened. It was a strange coping mechanism the hybrid had.

Knowing that didn't make it any easier.

'Morning!' I welcomed the Umbreon-morph warmly as he sat down. The boy's face was downcast, ears drawn back in what was clearly a determined expression. I could tell he was getting in the zone - waiting to go inside and battle again. Every day was the same. A negative feedback loop of eating, sleeping, and training.

The morph wiggled on the steel bench, like he was trying to pull his attention out of himself. I was comforted by this, knowing that he'd kept his head for the time being. Only yesterday the Umbreon had been knocked out by a full-power flamethrower. If it wasn't for a hasty Protect, it was questionable whether Orion would have survived the burns. So much energy was involved in the simulations that I was surprised he had enough strength to withstand the batterings.

One wrong move and he would have been dead.

'Feeling better?' I asked, unsure of what response to expect.

'Yeah' he grunted, checking his left hip where the fire had forced through the shield. I couldn't help but notice how big the fraying grey clothes looked on his skinny body. There wasn't much beyond muscle and sinew clinging to his bones.

Orion's rings glowed slightly.

'Are you ready?' I asked him.

None of the tech guys were here to aid and I took it in my hands to help the boy avoid my mother's wrath. Sure. They felt bad for Orion, but for them it was either his suffering or their paycheck. Money talks. There was a reason that all of this could happen in the first place - and why it hadn't been shut down. It was something I'd learnt not to think about too much, well tried to at least.

Looking up and our eyes met briefly, before Orion turned towards the gate. A red light flashed over the doorway into the training dome, the signal pulsing angrily as if to announce that the boy was already late. Orion pulled himself to his feet, his collar looking stupidly big as it hung loosely around his neck. The capacitors were bulky and could easily kill a man. It was meant to tame Garchomps for God's sake!

My mother Melissa arrived a few minute late, but was more focused on Orion than her very own daughter. She pretty much grabbed the boy, tugging him over the arena while talking furiously into his ear.

'Good luck' I whispered to myself.

All I could do now was take a seat by the window and watch. The treated, bullet-proof glass looked down and across the bleak training arena. Concrete formed round walls, forming a dome at the ceiling, brightly lit by white LED strip lights. The electronic systems that drove the training simulations were bolted the the ceiling. Those densely-wired black boxes were the source of most the Umbreon's misery. As per usual, Orion was chained up and left alone in the huge room.

The morph had shifted into a somewhat feral position. The chains held him down to prevent any escape, as well as the reinforced concrete and four inches of glass separating us. This enclosure was to protect us _from him_ as much as anything else. That's what you got when training a hybridised living weapon meant to rival the Gods themselves. It was a bunker to keep the morph contained inside.

I waited, my heart thumping like crazy.

A low frequency hum announced that the simulation was loading. Not a second later and Orion's chains fell away. The motion's the hybrid went through were scarily natural, his tail wagging slightly in anticipation. Even now the electronics were charging up at Orion prepared himself for the inevitable. He relaxed into a battle stance, staring down the oncoming battle like he had done nearly every day of short life. The morph's ears were perked up, arms and legs tense as he waited in what appeared to be poorly concealed eagerness.

It was almost as if he enjoyed it!

For a second the lights dimmed and the domed room seemed to hum. It was a sound that you heard through your feet as the huge robotics equipment driving the simulation kicked into gear.

In a flash the hologram materialised.

Across the other end of the training arena stood one of the largest legendaries of all time. I could only identify it as some kind of dragon, it's scaly body shimmering briefly before seeping into reality. The beast roared, towering over the small Umbreon at nearly ten feet tall.

The expertly created illusion appeared to be synchronous with the mechanics of the arena. Moving with ease, the dragon could have been a real Pokémon as it dived into battle. It bellowed blue liquid fire out its mouth, the hologram matching the one-point-two-one gigawatt flamethrower which burnt too hot to look at. Orion doged expertly, rolling to save momentum before retaliating with a flash of black energy at the beast. Even this early on in the battle, it was clear that the hybrid was tired. His injury from the day before meant he lagged a few second behind his usual self. Catching a lightning bolt with the pearly-white shield of a Protect, he only just managed to side-step the dragon as it launched forward for a brutal melee attack. Dodging a burst of flame by scaling the wall of the arena, it was clear that Orion was struggling.

The mock battle lasted for about two minutes. The machines at work throughout the arena created the simulation flawlessly - up to the point that Orion was even biting and scratching at the dragon in an attempt to fight-off the legendary. At one point the boy completed an unusual tactic where he disappeared completely. There was a brief interlude before the dark-type materialized out of the air itself. The AI of the illusion wasn't prepared for the surprise blow from behind, failing to counter the Umbreon. Orion's eyes were narrowed red slits as he unleashed a wave of attacks at his enemy.

The photons of the hologram shimmered under the bombardment.

Orion almost seemed to be winning as this toppled the huge dragon with a Dark Pulse. However, he wasn't prepared for retaliation from the illusion. Even as it stumbled, the pretend-legendary released a Thunderbolt that struck the hybrid as he dived for cover. The tesla-coil hidden in the hologram connected to the Umbreon-morph with a bone-shattering CRACK. A millisecond later and the boy was thrown backwards, splatting against the wall with the scent of ozone floating through the aircon.

Without warning, the Umbreon disappeared.

It was like he had sunk into the shadows themselves.

Somehow the boy had survived the electricity and was now once again coming at the Legendary from behind. The bogus creature was still flailing in an attempt to pick itself up from the the last blow. Already it was toppling as the morph skidded to a stop on all fours. He was breathing heavily. With obvious pain he stumbled onto his feet to stand over the hologram, smoke trailing off his burnt fur. The boy was visibly shaking and panting with harsh breaths. A shadow ball started to spark in one hand but it died suddenly. Even with the victory placed before him, the hybrid couldn't find the energy to launch the killing blow.

It was then that Orion collapsed.

He slid off on to his hands and feet, slumping to the side as his body went limp. The sensors in his collar picked up the sudden lack of response, cutting the signal to the simulation. In front of him, the illusion died and the legendary disappeared. The smoking flamethrower retracting into the ceiling indicated that his training was now over.

The unconscious form of the boy was splayed out on the dirty arena floor.

Automatic shut-down features opened the blast doors a few seconds later.

I was still in too much shock to respond. Something like this had never happened before. Orion hadn't been taking out fighting - he'd given up due to exhaustion. The boy had the opportunity to steal the victory but had faltered at the moment it mattered most. The whole reason for his existence was the reputation that Umbreon's had for endurance. It was unreal that Orion had simply run out of stamina - Impossible even.

The LED lighting flared slightly as the electric feed to the arena stabilised.

And that's when mother boldly walking in. Not into the observatory to see me, but into the arena itself. She strode across the scarred stone floor like a woman possessed, almost too fast for me to react. Her strides were big, face red with anger. That threw mercy out the window. It was clear my mother was going to do something terrible.

I flicked the intercom on, knowing that I had mere moments to get involved.

'Orion? Please respond!' I called loudly through the microphone, having to lean forward to speak into the receiver. 'ORION?'

But it didn't work - how could it? The boy was out cold.

My mother's voice came through the speaker as the intercom transmitted everything going on within the arena.

'That. Was. Not. Good. ENOUGH!' Melissa was struggling to control her anger. My insides did a somersault, knowing just how cruel she could be. 'Look what pain does to such a _pathetic_ thing as you. You think you understand REAL pain. YOU GIVE UP ON ME AFTER EVERYTHING I'VE DONE FOR YOU?'

She inched closer to Orion who lay crumpled on the floor.

'This is how you repay me? You FAILED.'

I cringed as she gave a sharp kick to the boy's stomach. He twitched but was otherwise unable to respond to the torment.

' _Vermin_.' Melissa hissed loudly, as she reared her leg back, aiming for his spleen .

Orion took the impact with a groan, a flicker of his tail indicating that he was coming back around. This was getting too much and I dived for the exit, only to find the steel door had been locked from the outside. Swearing, I tried to call up security only for the line to run dead. What the hell was going on?

Orion was stirring and I pressed the intercom to send a message again.

There was no signal.

'Oh God no … '

Slamming on the glass was useless as I was forced to watch the situation unfold. Melissa had gone rogue again and I watched as she tormented the hybridised Umbreon even further. It was stupid really, given what occurred last time. During that event he'd hospitalized three members of security before finally being tranquilized.

' _Vermin!_ ' Mellisa's mocking voice was alarmingly hollow.

Orion pushed himself onto all fours once more, golden rings flickering eerily as he stumbled. The exertion from that act alone was causing sweat to bead across his face. Melissa didn't seem impressed by the feeble act, swinging out a foot to continue her brutal attack. The reactions of the Morph saved him however, dodging to the side not a moment too soon. He turned to face the woman in a strangely Pokémon-like manor, breaking out into a deep growl. Orion's already burnt black fur stood on end as he bared his pointed teeth, refusing to submit to the beating.

Melissa's grin only grin wider,

'Oh, so _now_ you fight back...Where was that EARLIER!"

I hit the glass with my fists, praying that this wasn't happening. Had the entire world gone insane?

Orion stood up slowly, obviously in immense pain, back onto two feet. With his ears drawn back aggressively, his more human stance made the boy seem bigger than he really was. Even with the ragged grey clothes hanging from his frame, the animalistic and increasingly venomous glare he gave the woman was terrifying. Purple energy crackled around his form.

Melissa took a slow step back, scrabbling in her pocket before yanking out a back object. My mother held the controller to the hybrid's collar in her hand like a weapon. She waved the plastic remote in front of her, displaying the item blatantly in front of the morph.

'STAND DOWN.' She yelled at the Umbreon. 'STAND DOWN!'

Orion was still inching closer, bent over with his hands raising into an obvious defensive stance. Fragments of purple energy were shimmering around his fists, forming neat Shadow Claws which dripped ghost-type blobs like blood running down his forearms.

'Orion, you _wouldn't_ dare.' Melissa's voice shook slightly, 'Stand. DOWN!'

The boy's ears flickered, but he shook his head as if clearing it of bad thoughts. He eyed the woman aggressively, clearly focused on the small controller clasped in her white fingers. Orion had been at the tail-end of the device enough times to know that, even like this, it was the cause of all his misery.

Melissa twitched the remote around in front of the hybrid, watching as the demonic Umbreon-morph followed the object with his eyes.

The low rumble of a growl could be heard reverberating through the intercom.

Was blood thicker than water?

Without warning, Melissa threw the remote.

The plastic bounced across the hard concrete with a soft thud. Instantly Orion was on the device, diving down to exterminate the source of his agony. He crunched the plastic between his teeth. Shaking the technology furiously and shards of the remote, along with frayed wires, made a small clouds of particles. As if to make a point, Orion spat out what remained before turning his blood red eyes to his trainer. Baring his fang-like teeth, he bellowed at my mother. His tail rose, legs slipping back into a more natural four-legged stance.

It was obvious that Orion had slipped into his battle stance. Reasoning did not exist when he was like this, only following directives from Melissa. Orion in this mode was a weapon guided to do whatever was desired. His sanity was near nonexistent, instincts overriding logic as his brain tried to fight or flee the singular threat.

It appeared that the morph had chosen the former.

'Don't do it.' I whispered, 'Orion please…you don't understand…'

Melissa towered over the Umbreon. In the time it had taken him to destroy the controller to his bulky leather shock-collar, she'd taken a few large steps backwards. Orion quickly made up this ground, stepping forwards with his back arched, golden rings flashing as a clear distraction. Dark place energy seemed to be dripping off his body, as well as the purple sludge-like sweat which Umbreon's naturally produced.

Having destroyed the device which the boy assumed controlled his collar, Orion was free to hunt Melissa. He prowled forwards, eyes glazed over and utterly focused on his target.

'A _ctivate collar...ACTIVATE COLLAR_!' I could hear my mother's voice over the intercom.

Banging at the glass did nothing, and I frantically searched for some type of override on the control panel. The observation room was nearly empty of such technology, and I felt bile beginning to form at the back of my throat.

Orion was moving slowly, though the faint amount of tension building his legs hinted at what was to come. Melissa had been backing away slowly but her motions betrayed her disregard for the situation. The hybrid hadn't yet twigged that something wasn't quite right. Already, he had narrowed the distance to a few metres. Then with a fluid explosion of muscle, he leapt at Melissa. Tongues of ghost-energy had formed the claws around his hands again. Orion dived towards the human with his teeth bared.

' _SHOCK!_ ' Melissa shouted even as the hybrid lunged for her throat.

There was a sharp beep from the collar. Orion, who had previously been mid air as he surged towards the woman, now seemed to hit a brick wall. His body spasmed as he dropped hard against the concrete. The momentum from his leap meant that the hybrid slid along the arena floor a few feet past his intended target. A turbulent cloud of dust rose from his wake. Orion was paralyzed and unable to complain as his arms and legs had contorted with the burst of electricity.

Melissa was audibly gasping for air.

'No.' I whispered to myself, and then louder, 'NO!'

Frantically searching for anything that would get me out of this room, I decided instead to simply smash the activation panel until something happened. Kicking at the row of buttons, something finally gave and as the steel door behind clanged open.

That didn't meant I didn't hear my mother once again activate the voice-control in Orion's collar.

'SHOCK.' The word echoed across the intercom. There was a pause at what I could only image was her watching the small boy writhe in pain, 'V _ermin._ You _dare._..'

By the time that it took me to head down two flights of stairs and into the loading room, the medics were already there. Melissa was stood off to the side getting some doctor's attention for claims of 'mild trauma'. I only had daggers for eyes as I used the chaos to sneak into the arena itself. As of yet, no one had risked entering.

Orion was curled up in the centre of the dome, shivering.

The hybrid was still cowering, helpless on the floor as I tiptoed forwards. The smell of burnt hair and singed flesh was disgusting, tickling at my nostrils as I fought down the urge to throw up. Black burn marks littered the stone floor.

Orion didn't seem to be aware of what was going on - least of all myself. Crouching down, I pushed away any second thoughts before going to comfort the boy. Blood was already seeping out from the charred spot where the Thunderbolt had hit. The grey material of his clothing had been burnt away, leaving a fraying hole and exposing the wound. Orion's red eyes were half closed, face scrunched up in an attempt to fight the pain. Already, I could see the black and purple bruises round his neck forming from the constriction of the collar.

Orion's eyes narrowed upon finally resolving me through the red cloud of pain.

'It's ok.' I soothed in a rather uncertain tone, 'It's ok.'

Distrust floated across his expression. For a brief moment his lips twitched as if to expose his teeth. I could see his attempt to pull himself away from me - but the pain must have been too much. He rasped, choking out a rough noise with a wince.

'It's ok Orion, it's me'

The Umbreon stared at me, his pupils growing into large saucers.

'That's right. It's me. I'm not going to hurt you.'

His pained whining was agony for the both of us.

'It's going to be ok.' I spoke softly, looking around for help. Even now, the medics hadn't yet dared to enter the arena. That left me with no other voice. Keeling down, I squeezed my arms under the body and gently lifted him up. At first I expected the worst, cringing away from the boy even as I carried him back to the entrance. Thankfully Orion didn't attempt any further attacks, instead he closed his eyes and finally gave into to fatigue.

Already, I could feel the toxic sweat leaching out from his skin. It made my arms itchy.

Carrying him gently, I steered the two of us towards the medical bay.

I couldn't let this go on any longer.

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

The world seemed to stutter then.

Tumbling forward into nothing, it was difficult to describe the motion without anything to contrast it to. A blue screen had been thrown up to dilute the image. Ocean waves towering and crashing over us. Who was I? What was I? I felt like I was being ripped out of my body.

We floated, watching the world like some strange television camera.

Time blurred past, rocketing backwards as if in rewind. The grinding of tape on reels was the only sound as we gyrated, thrown through images of the past like sailing on a rough sea. Waves of blue aura cascading through the halls of memory. Scraps were taken and mushed together, filling in the tumult and roaring aggression that became mangled in the storm. There was nothing to discern even as I gasped for air.

Things stilled momentarily.

A boy and girl looked through a shallow screen of glass and into the room beyond. The place was clinical and white washed, an utterly sterile environment. The plain walls seemed bare of anything except doors. Medical equipment was placed on small trolleys. Machines of steel and plastic too complex to understand.

The girl looked like she could have been six or seven, with almond eyes. The boy looked a few years older, although this extra maturity failed to show on his young face. Even with darker brown hair compared to her pale umber, it was clear that he was her brother.

Turning to the boy, the girl spoke quietly.

'He's going to be alright isn't he? Mother said _he's_ the one that's going to help us.'

Through the glass was a small room, tiny compared to the rest of the compound. Their breath fogged the window as both stood on tiptoe to get a good look inside. Beyond was a small operating theatre, the layout fitted the appearance of a Pokémon centre. However, it lacked the warmth of the hospitals. There was no colour to break-up the endless cleanroom environment. Both could regoncise at least some of the veterinary instruments placed smartly on the tables inside.

In the centre of the room, lying on a steel workbench, was a small boy. He didn't look too much younger than the girl, so perhaps five or six years of age given his tiny size. It was unusual to see the child curled up within what was otherwise a medical bay for healing Pokémon. What was even more unusual, was the pair of large Umbreon ears that protruded from messy black hair. Not only that, but a sleek furry trailed from the base of his spine. Gold decorated his pristine black fur.

The boy cuddled up to his tail cutely, a white blanket covering much of his pale skin.

At last, her brother spoke. He jutted out his jaw as if faking disinterest. Yet his bright grey eyes told a different story.

'Mother says he will.' He spoke calmly, before reaffirming more sternly 'Of course he will! He's going to be so powerful that he'll take on the Gods and win! That's what Mother says.'

'But he's so small!' The girl complained, 'Will he really bring Daddy back?'

Her brother fell silent. He was old enough to know that such a subject was better left alone.

For a long time they simply stared at the boy.

That was, until time span forward. Things blurred and tumbled once more until a steady place was reached. Expanding outwards, it was if another scene was pulling me inwards. We had a bird-eye view of the sprawling compound and industrial estate beyond. The trees shifted in colour from green to orange to brown. Snow appeared and then melted in an instant - the seasons flashing past the only marker of time.

It stopped as quickly as it began.

The woman was quite tall, with long ginger hair cascading down onto her shoulders. Walking by her side was a skinny black-haired child, chortling away to himself as he pulled at the woman's arm feverently. Bending down was an obvious chore for Melissa, but she held the boy's hand nonetheless. The grip seemed a little too harsh, for he was struggling to keep his feet on the ground. It was apparent that this wasn't a motherly gesture.

The boy looked older than he had before, his small frame seeming to be a natural blend of his human and Pokémon characteristics. Umbreon ears poked out of the boy's head, his hair roughly cut so that patches appear longer in some places. Loose grey clothes hung off his small body - making him look like an underaged prision convict.

Melissa nearly dragged the boy as he stopped suddenly, nose twitched at some unknown scent in the air. Orion skipped across the floor as he was tugged onwards, nail marks left in his wrists as he was firmly placed back on the ground.

'Come on Orion. Pay attention!'

They crossed another white-walled hallway before Melissa found the door she was looking for. There was nothing on the orange veneer of the entrance to indicate anything special about the room inside. Even so, she brandished a key and quickly opened the lock.

The LEDs inside flashed a couple of times before the room was basked in clinical white light.

It was clear that the door merely opened into a small storage cupboard. However, inside was a small sleeping Pokémon. The sleek black Umbreon was loosely chained to a small filing cabinet, although she rapidly woke upon hearing the intrusion. Stumbling slightly, the boy scurried towards the weary Pokémon. Her crimson eyes watched the hybrid with interest until, without warning, Orion yelped loudly.

Melissa grabbed the boy's ringed tail to drag him backwards. Wrestling frantically, the pain suddenly became unbearable and the hybrid reached out his hands towards the Eeveelution. Orion whined loudly.

'Calm _DOWN_ Orion.' Melissa hissed. The boy didn't listen however, still struggling in her grip.

At last, his trainer gave up.

'Well _here_ _she is_. You said you'd only stop misbehaving if you saw her.'

The previously sleeping Umbreon watched wearily at the ongoing on the hard floor of the white room was likely uncomfortable, for she pulled herself to her feet. Seeing the pair for the first time brought a huff of surprise to her muzzle. The boy being held in her face was obviously human, yet had Umbreon features clear as day upon his little body. That wasn't right! What was this creature?

She sniffed at the air, picking up what was clearly the scent of another Umbreon.

Without warning, the woman dropped the hybridised human. Orion, now free, seemed to relax and approached the Umbreon slowly. For a moment they just sniffed at each other wearily. It was then that the small child nearly jumped onto the Umbreon in glee. Pulling away, the Pokémon prepared to protect herself only to be embraced in the most gentle of hugs. The child was even purring! Blinked slowly, she struggled to make sense of the mumbled Pokémon speech,

'…M….Mm…Mother…'

Orion hugged her closer, but still with the most caring of touch.

And in that embrace the world trembled, accelerating to impossible speeds before shattering into a million pieces with the crash of a wave. Great clouds of memories dropped thunderbolts onto the rolling salt and foam. It was if I was being ripped into shreds and then re-assembled like a jigsaw of emotion. Awareness sutured, working the tiller. I was thrown about by the currents. Aura surged forward and I accepted my fate.

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

White walls once more.

A long corridor, orange doors, stark strip lights, concrete floor.

The sound of footsteps.

'Mellll…Mmnnnelll...are we going outside now?'

The Umbreon boy begged the tall woman, following along at her heels. He looked older now, possibly reaching seven or eight years old. It was hard to tell as nothing had really changed. Orion still wore the tattered grey clothing, with only his aged face and height suggesting that years had flown by. It was almost as if he had grown into his Umbreon ears and tail. They no longer appeared so out of proportion, but still had that strange comical appearance on the hybrid. A large bruise blossomed across one cheek, somewhat obscuring the blood red colour of his irises.

No longer as ginger, Melissa's hair had greyed significantly to the point it was white in places. Her eyes were beady as she flicked her attentioned down to the scraggly child.

'Yes… of course. You do like it outside don't you Orion?'

She smiled but there was a lack of warmth in her grin.

Taking his hand in her own, Melissa led the child down through a row of corridors and out into the courtyard. Double doors slid open to reveal the staff recreation area, which was empty at this time of day. The well-tended lawn and garden was in part made up of an old estate - now a scientific compound mostly constructed of stone and concrete in the most ugly 60's architecture. The old building no longer held any of its former glory, gutted to be placed by state of the art bioengineering facility.

A faint spring breeze rustled the leaves of a single ginkgo tree.

Orion quickly pulled out of Mellisa's grasp, running towards a small patch of cultivated lush grass. His voice warbled happily before his feet ran away from the rest of him. The child tumbled, rolling across the lawn but apparently enjoying every moment. Wiggling merrily, Orion's Umbreon tail wagged furiously as he played. Rolling in the grass seemed to bring a lot of pleasure to the boy as he rubbed his black tipped nose into the fresh outdoor scents.

The image stuttered before turning to static.

Moments of happiness punctured the storm. Sombre ties splitting loose ends that weaved between the blue, turquoise, grey, and gold. Rain hammered across the horizon only to be met with blinding sun. The sky cast sunrays across the green fields that appeared as if from nowhere.

Blue waves swallowed what remained.

The boy trotted up to the two children, his tail wagging comically behind him. They were playing some kind of chasing game, tagging each other back and forth across the field. The siblings had aged notably. The auburn-haired girl was nearly a teenager, and had grown a few inches whilst maturing significantly. However, that was nothing compared to her lanky brother.

Upon seeing the Umbreon they stopped.

'What are you wearing?' The younger girl asked quizzically, rubbing some dirt off her nose. The game of tag had got a little repetitive with the two of them, and an interruption gave a chance for her to recover her breath. Most of all, it was apparent that Jenny was studying the oversized leather collar the hung loosely around the boy's neck. A heavy buckle at the front weighed the material down at an awkward angle. Black boxes lined the thick leather, but the children were too naive to understand the power of the electricity stored in the row of capacitors.

'Mel Gave it to me!' Orion spoke happily, watching for what he hoped was a positive reaction from both children. He was overjoyed at the prospect of owning something that had been gifted by the tall woman. The hybrid went as far to show off what was easily identifiable as a shock collar.

Jenny's older brother laughed knowingly, not bothering to hide an evil grin. That was until he reached toward to slap the boy somewhat harshly. His large palm caught Orion squarely across the shoulder.

'Got you!' The bully yelled, before sprinting away.

Picking himself up, Orion frowned slightly. Neither of the children appeared to appreciate what Melissa had given him. Should he not be proud of the collar? Those thoughts rapidly dissipated when he threw himself into the game with a cheeky laugh. Running in a loping gait, Orion caught up all too easily to the older brother.

None of them had noticed Melissa sat in the morning sunshine watching the children play. Relaxing leisurely on a park bench, she read through the wad of papers stacked heavily on the seat beside her. Although a narrow pair of sunglasses covered much of her face, bloodshot eyes watched the children over the metal rims. Things were progressing too quickly for her to rest.

The sound of laughter lit up the air once more.

Orion had been quickly tagged again. The hybrid was notably much faster than the two human children. Quickly closing the gap between himself and her eldest son, the morph leaped through the air in a flying tackle. Orion soared through the air before hitting the boy with startling accuracy just below the waist. That impact sent both of them rolling across the ground. Orion had taken much of the momentum, his engineered body barely noticing the heavy bump. Both were giggling madly.

Melissa rolled her eyes.

Footsteps pulled her attention away from the children. A white-coated male made his way down the path quickly, stopping in front of the woman and waiting for some indication to speak. Melissa drew her cardigan around her more tightly, eyeing the middle-aged man. Coffee stains covered patches of his coat.

'Is it ready?' The woman asked quietly, her eyes flicking back towards the children.

'Yes ma'am. We ran the final tests and everything is complete. The simulation capacity is up to nought-point-five gigawatt, though in a few years we can upgrade this as the subject progresses.'

The researcher explained this briefly and concisely to the woman. Though, his attempt to hide sweaty hands behind his back gave away the true anxiety he was hiding.

Melissa didn't seem to notice. Instead she grinned, 'Good. I think it's time we started. Let us see just what this boy is capable off... '

The last sentence was drawn out through a kaleidoscope.

I seemed to fall into her eyes, descending through the madness only to tumble out of the other end of the tunnel. My sision stretched twice over, only to snap back into position. Space and time warped through the conical foil of memories. I could no longer differentiate past from present, nor memories from reality. Orion's mind became tangled and I fought to surface.

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

Twin screams came from inside the room. The shattering of glass followed rapidly behind, a cascade of noise which did little to hide the cries.

Looking up from her work, Melissa only just remembered that she was supposed to be keeping an eye on the children. The latest test results had come back and she was too engaged with the number-crunching to remember her own daughter. Dropping her pen, she rushed out from her office and through the open door immediately. Some idiot had left the storage facility open again. A look of worry had found its way onto Melissa's face, eyes dreading the worst.

Her very own daughter was sitting on the ground, crying loudly. The remains of shattered bottles covered the ground surrounding her. Broken glass from the cupboard above had smashed over the counter and showered the girl with fragments of the container. Flakes of it were in her hair and clothes. As first glance it was easy to tell that she wasn't truly hurt. But, the wails coming from her trembling mouth told otherwise.

'Jenny!' The woman snatched her daughter up from the ground without hesitation, 'Oh Jenny you need to be more careful.' Melissa crooned, brushing at her daughter's hair gently. 'Is everything OK? What were you doing…oh Jenny! We're going to have to clean you up aren't we?'

Tickling her daughters chin helped to soften her crying. Melissa smiled warmly, making sure the girl wasn't damp from whatever liquid had been stored in the vials.

'I'm...I'm sorry Mother.' Jenny went to sob again, rubbing at her dribbling nose.

'It's ok Jenny. These things happen.' Her mother pecked her cheek, 'Let's go and get you cleaned up.'

Melissa was almost out the door when she was stopped by a small whine. Holding her daughter in her arms, she turned to survey the room again.

She had completely missed the other person in the room. Orion was curled up on the floor, his long Umbreon ears pinned back as his face displayed fear and pain. Tears collected around his red eyes, wide with fright. It was clear that he had slid over the counter - the most likely cause for the damage in the first place. The hybrid was now in crumpled heap on the laminated floor. Blood was forming across his legs and feet where glass had punctured and cut through his skin. He was soaking, dripping with whatever had been in the glass containers previously.

Orion's red eyes were like saucers as he mewed.

Melissa paused for a moment, considering whether to help the boy or call in one of the technicians to do it for her. Jenny was hugging her waist tightly, though through her tears she quickly spotted the Umbreon-morph.

'Mother? Orion's hurt.'

'I can see that Jenny.' Melissa spoke flatley. She turned away, only for her daughter to pull her back weakly.

'Mother! What about Orion. He's...He's bleeding.'

Orion whined again. It was the sound of a Pokémon in distress and didn't match his human appearance.

At last, Melissa gave into her childs blatant request. Making sure that the tear-stricken Jenny was ok to stand on her own, the woman bent down and scooped up Orion. The hybrid was remarkably light in her arms, even as the creature smeared his own blood across her new jacket.

'Oh…oh Orion' Melissa tried to behave caringly in front of her daughter - even as she ground at her teeth.

'Let's go then Jenny.' She called her daughter after her, both heading downstairs to the nearest bathroom.

For a moment it seemed that we were following the woman. But the corridors were shifting, the whitewashed walls and concrete floors distorting to form ripples. A high pitched whistle started, rapidly gaining in volume.

There was nothing I could do, the sound etching pain across my very being. My vision crumbled, dessicated, and decayed. The world dissolved into a blue liquid that swirled and dragged me under its very surface. Sound burst my eardrums and I fought off a shout - anything to relieve the misery developing inside. It was as if I was being absorbed into the very fabric of the illusion.

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

'Leave it alone Moonrise!'

'But Mother!'

I gave up on worrying the thick leather and instead let my arm drop with a weighty sigh. Having this manacle strapped around my wrist was just so annoying! It dug into my skin and felt heavy! I was used to having the equipment strapped around my neck - my shoulder's feeling unnaturally light now that the device now strapped around my arm.

Gnawing at the leather had done nothing but blunt my teeth, so I instead decided to toy with the strap.

'It's not coming off. Just leave it alone.'

I sighed. My Mother was right. She usually was. The fact that they had decided to bolt the leather around my wrist meant that there was no way I was getting it off. All I had to do was get used to the stupid tag, not that I had much choice. If Melissa wanted me to wear it, then wear it I did. Trying anything else would end up with the same result anyway - and more pain then I deserved for my efforts.

I shivered at the thought.

Morning sunlight starting to shine through the thick glass of the dinner-plate sized windows. I didn't know how long I had been awake, but I felt beyond tired. Sleep had been difficult knowing that something was going on. Melissa had been hinting at an event for weeks. She even got me new clothes to wear a few days ago. Itching at my neck again, everything felt uncomfortable under the new fabric.

An additional nuisance was the replacement of my nest with a new mattress. Now nothing smelt like it should and it was difficult to relax with the fresh scents of soap and plastic. On top of that, I'd been washed and groomed for the first time in a month. The smell of chemicals still clung to the fur and the thin covering of hair that dappled my legs this time of year. The winter gave my coat a slight sheen in the thin dawn glow.

'Rest Moonrise. It might be a long day.'

Mother gazed across at me lazily from the mattress. She'd taken an immediate liking to the soft fabric and had barely left since. Yawning once, the Umbreon closed her eyes again and returned to dozing. I just huffed, rolling over whilst trying not to disturb her small form.

I didn't know what time it was. Internally, I somehow knew that nobody would be coming for a while. Training had become such a perfected routine that my body knew what time of day it was better than I did. That didn't stop me becoming restless. Curling up on myself, I simply lay and waited for someone to come and let me out of my pen. The morning seemed to last for eternity. I let my eyelids grow heavy and my breathing level.

'Morning Orion!'

It was only upon waking that I realised I had managed to fall asleep. My eyelids burst open in an instant, my tail responding to the voice before I did.

'Um…eon?' I coughed loudly, before croaking 'Jenny?'

I hadn't seen the girl in weeks and bounced up onto my feet. With my tail wagging furiously, I remembered my manners and tried to steady myself. She didn't like it when I behaved too much like an Umbreon, even as I sat on my haunches and gave her a toothy grin.

I wasn't sure what to say but Jenny quickly filled the silence.

'It's nice to see you too Orion.' The teenager patted my head gently, 'I only got back last night…so I thought I'd come by see how you were doing!'

I nodded, not sure why that was relevant but happy to see her anyway. She looked older than how I remember her to be - but then again she was wearing strange clothing. It looked somehow formal. The scent that defined her still lingered however, and I relaxed after a few uneasy moments. Maybe it was a coming of age thing?

'Anyways…' Jenny seemed to grow more awkward the longer she stood there. I didn't understand why. I was so happy to see her but something felt different this time. Normally, Jenny would be much more enthusiastic to see me. She'd usually chat happily about what she'd been doing recently. Now there was a haunted look to her expression. Blink and it was gone.

'I took the job of taking you up to breakfast this morning.' Jenny explained after a pause, 'We have an event on today and mother wishes for you to involved…'

She trailed off, before looking me up and down. There was uncertainty in her eyes.

'You must be on your best behaviour. Ok?'

I nodded, wagging my tail in confirmation. My wrist still felt heavy from the leather strap and I stopped myself from gnawing at it again. They wanted me to behave. Often that command was convoluted and I had to guess what Melissa wanted me to _behave as_. She would often grow angry when I failed to follow human etiquette and customs. Melissa wasn't very good at teaching these rules, but Jenny was much better at explaining things. Maybe she could help?

'Cool. We'll head on up then…and oh! You too of course!'

The latter was said to my Mother. Our chatter must have woken her, but the Umbreon was wagging her tail as she greeted Jenny. After the quick re-introduction, we followed the human up and out of the compound into the communal rooms. The arena in the centre of the building took up much of the space in the concrete box, but hallways and corridors formed a confusing network which I struggled to recall. It was nice being with Jenny again. At last she started making small talk - though it was something about working on vaccines and to be honest I didn't have a clue what she was on about.

Jenny seemed different from the little girl I always remembered her being. She never wanted to play anymore, and started to distance herself if I sat too close. Perhaps she didn't like me anymore? Unless...maybe I had changed to? How long had it really been since I saw her last? Her visits were becoming progressively infrequent.

'By the looks of things the place is empty…' The girl spoke to herself as she poked her head round the doorway, before confirming 'Yeah it's just us this morning Orion.'

The kitchenette (as they called it) was empty as usual. I'd only been here on a few occasions but understood that this was where they prepared my meals. Most of the time they just brought it down to my pen in a bowl. Holding my tail between my legs a little, I felt awkward standing in a room which I wasn't usually allowed. Jenny waved me towards a stool and I sat quickly. She was busying herself opening and closing cupboards.

It was clear Jenny was searching for something. It was also obvious that she was trying to hide the fact that she was. Surely Jenny should knew where everything was? How long had it been since she was last here? It hadn't been that long surely?

'How have you been then Orion?' Jenny interrupted my thoughts. She now had a couple of bowls in her hand. Both held the same gloopy mixture which I'd seen every day for as long as I could remember. The scent coming from the food raised my ears and I sat up a little straighter. I had to stop myself licking my lips.

'I've…' I wasn't sure what to say so I just nodded,

'You've been good then?' Jenny bent down and placed my mother's bowl on the floor, 'Has my mother been letting you do other things outside…outside of training?'

At last, Jenny passed my meal towards me, leaving it in my calloused hands. She dropped a spoon into the mix and the plastic sunk in between the chunks slowly.

I nodded again. Even though training was now three sessions a day, Melissa had been kind and let me have a few books to practice reading with. They were much harder than I was used to, but I was getting through a few pages a day now. I'm sure at some point in the future I'd be good enough to read each all the way through. Maybe even whole books at a time?

I fumbled with the spoon. Jenny watched me as I struggled, frantically trying to stuff the mixtures into my mouth. Remembering that I was supposed to behave myself, I slowed the motion. The aids that usually fed me hadn't provided any form of eating implement for years. It felt more natural to eat directly from the bowl anyway. I tried to make sure. Jenny didn't notice my struggle. She was watching me intently as she ate opposite.

Everything was white or steel in the small room. Jenny's red cardigan stood out in stark contrast, not to mention her black boots. It was hard to keep my eyes focused elsewhere.

It was rude to stare at people.

Gulping my food down in the most civilised manner I could, Jenny dragged a piece of paper out of her pocket. I stopped to watch her unfold it, ears perking up in interest. Was this for me?

Unfurling the note, Jenny cleared her throat.

'So Orion...this is your schedule for today. I will be with you for most of it so you don't need to worry about anything. As I said, it's important that you're on your best behaviour. Got it?'

I itched at an ear, but still nodded silently. My neck felt exposed without my heavy collar sitting on my shoulders. I didn't like the feeling.

'Good job. So you have to be careful about...about your…uh…speech. Focus on the English words ok? And no growling at people that you think smell odd or look funny.'

Knowing what she was referring to, I hung my head. They always had to bring up that incident. I hope Jenny took that as a message so say I'd try my best.

Lifting my eyes slowly and Jenny was still staring at the paper.

I let my tail wag gently.

'Cool.' The woman forced a tight smile, 'The event is over the whole site, but Melissa will be using it to show visitors the will be a reception and you'll have a chance to show your skills in the arena. These people are interested in a new medicine that we have been developing and so they're interested in seeing you…'

Jenny trailed off. For a brief moment our eyes met and she quickly looked away.

'They're interested in you because you've been using a medicine to help you train. And they want to use that medicine themselves. Understand?'

I nodded slowly.

'Are you sure? You look confused.'

I grumbled, trying not to growl in frustration. Yes I understood. One of Melissa's assistants had explained they were using something called a 'virus' to make me stronger. It infected me like a illness, but making me stronger rather than weaker. So there were people here to see the virus?

Jenny straightened herself on her stool and once more scanned the paper.

'Nevermind everything else. Let's get you cleaned up and presentable.'

Nearly an hour later and I found myself in what was quickly becoming a nightmare. Jenny had taken me to a large room upstairs which was full of humans. There could have been a hundred, all wearing ridiculous clothing and sharing potent drinks. The room smelt odd and I sneezed a few times before adapted to the scent. Then there was the noise - an endless cacophony of people chattering noisily.

Jenny tugged my hand forcefully. The leather circling round my other wrist crackled to life and the thin shock tingled my veins. I suppressed the growl in my throat with every fibre of my body. I wouldn't let Jenny down again! However that didn't stop the hackles on my neck from standing on end. I had to force my lips to cover my teeth. Jenny pulled tighter still and I forced myself to relax.

'ORION!' the human hissed in a hoarse whisper, 'WHAT did I SAY?'

I huffed, 'She was looking at bre funny.'

Admitting the fact only seemed to make things worse,

'They're all looking at you funny Orion.' Jenny sounded exasperated, 'They're inspecting you because they've never seen someone like you before.'

'An Umbreon?' I asked, turning to see if my mother was around. Surely they'd seen an Eeveelution like me before? My book said we were popular in some places and even brought good luck. People were supposed to like Umbreons?

'No Orion! Uh, ok...maybe. But you're a special Umbreon! They've never seen one that's been brought up like you have…to be _human_!' She hissed that last word to emphasize my attempt to act in such a way., 'The point of today is that they are interested in you and what you can do.'

Nodding dejectedly, I tried to let her words sink in.

With sweaty palms and itchy legs in these trousers, I tried to get my tail from out between my legs. I'd been sternly told to act natural - or at least as much as I could after the pampering this morning. It had started with a bath. Then I found myself getting a haircut - which turned into a shave over the rest of my body. Only after threatening the helpers venomously did they leave me alone. However, I couldn't stop Jenny for then dressing me in even newer clothes than I had on. How did people feel comfortable in these things?

The band around my wrist only seemed to tighten more and more as I thought about it.

'Did you want a drink?' Jenny did ask, but forced the glass into my paw anyway. I didn't have a clue what was in the vessel as I sniffed over the rim tentatively,

'It's water Orion. Mother would kill me if you had anything else.'

Holding the cup tightly, Jenny finally let go of my hand to pick up a drink for herself

'Ah Jenny!'

I span around, a little startled at the man that suddenly appeared as if from nowhere. Wearing the most ridiculous of outfits, I wondered if he could breathe under the tight-fitting maroon thing which was done up to his neck. A bright red tie was tucked under his shirt and the sparkling fabric drew my eyes back and forth hypnotizingly.

'Oh hi Sam! How's it going? I wasn't expecting to see you here?' Jenny's otherwise warm tone sounded forced.

The man chuckled and ran a hand over his slick hair. I realised I was staring, and so pretended to look elsewhere. Across the room, other silly dressed people were talking to each other as if the world hadn't fallen into a heap of utter muddle. The whole room stank of fake scents which tickled the back of my nose. Some of the females reeked of the stuff to the point I had to stop myself from vomiting.

'Good as always Jenny.' The sleek male replied, 'I managed to get an invite through work seems we've been beavering away at something similar for the past couple of years. To be honest, I wasn't expecting our biggest competition to simply sell off the patent - but there we go. I couldn't miss out on an opportunity to have a look round after everything you've hinted at over the past year or so!'

Jenny smiled and I knew it was an awkward attempt to hide something.

'Yes.' She chuckled, 'Well...'

'And this is the subject?' The man (I think he was called Sam) focused on me and I had to push my eyes away from his own. He had a shrewd face and I immediately got an intense feeling of distrust from the human. Sam had the eyes of a Spearow.

My ears dropped against my scalp.

The red of his tie was hypnotising.

Jenny placed an hand on my shoulder with the most gentle of touch. We had agreed the signal this morning to let me know everything was ok. My brains still had to override my body however. A deep growl was already forming at the back of my throat. Everything about Sam was more akin to an Ekans than a human!

'Orion, this is Sam. And Sam this Orion. You'll be seeing more of him in the sessions this afternoon, after the tour I think.'

'Yes. Nice to meet you Orion. I'll be expecting great things from you.'

He threw his hand out and I gripped it loosely as I had been taught. The man decided to clench mine in a firm clench and for a moment I didn't know what I was supposed to do. They'd never told me about situations like this? Flicking my eyes towards Jenny for help, I simply followed his lead and squeezed back tighter.

A small shock shot up my left wrist and I loosed go immediately. Sam looked a little red in the face.

'Uh…' he stuttered, 'A good strong grip you've got there.'

'Thank you.' I said simply, not sure whether this was another strange human custom. Jenny's face told me otherwise and I reddened upon realizing that I had got another thing wrong.

'So. I'm guessing you've already networked with every Tom, Dick, and Harry before you got to us?' Jenny asked Sam gently, drawing his attention away from cradling his hand. Meanwhile, the man was sending spiteful looks in my direction. 'Have you made any new contacts for work?' she asked sweetly,

And as easily as that the two of them were talking about something or other. I'd heard a few of the words they were talking about before. Modifications, genes, data…and other science things which I had never been allowed to learn more of. Deciding I didn't want to stand like a lemon, I tried to be productive and instead spun my eyes round studying each person in turn. Human watching was easy from a Pokémon perspective. We had the added sense of sound and smell to pick up on those extra things humans missed.

With time more and more people seemed to want to come and talk with Jenny - and me too. My friend had already explained in a harsh whisper how to act when they gripped my hand, or how I was supposed to answer to small talk. Our conversations seemed to be on big issues rather than small ones, talking about people I hadn't met or concepts that sounded fictional.

Jenny did most of the talking.

Minutes turned into an hour. Time dragged on and soon I became fidgety. Often Jenny placed her hand on my shoulder as a signal that everything was ok. It was a gesture she'd invented as a kid and the motion calmed me automatically. That alone got me through the long minutes.

Then the food came out.

To put it bluntly, I'd never seen so much edible stuff in one place before. The scent emanating from the table upon table of an in innumerable number of items was like liquid honey! There was everything from simple loaves of bread to bright colourful displays of stacked macaroons. Plates of various meats adorned the space between rows of cut sandwiches. I'd only ever seen such things in picture books, my eyes unable to break contact with the sight. Already, I was gravitating towards that side of the room without meaning to. Chocolate coated everything that thick sauces and jams did not. Hordes of plates stood waiting and already humans were taking their pick of the selection.

It was absurd how reserved and casually the humans selected small portions of the display. Many barely managed to fill their plates as they sampled this and that - almost as if the feast was an average meal. There was even waiters to help people too lazy to serve themselves!

Wiping at my chin frantically cleared a bit of drool that was forming around my lips.

A shot of electricity shuddered through my bones and I was suddenly returned to reality. Jenny had her hand on my shoulder once more, her small hand blocking me from getting any closer to the banquet.

'That's not for you Orion.' The woman sighed, 'Melissa prepared something special for you later.

That didn't stop me whining loudly. My ears drooped upon finding that the noise had drawn a few mirthful eyes on me. I was doing my best to ignore the guests, but it didn't seem fair!

'Breeee….' I groaned, tugging away from Jenny.

A sharp jolt of static shot up my forearm and I yelped. Now that did draw the attention of the guests. In the silence that followed, nearly everyone was looking at me. Some were simply catching a glance out of the corners of their eyes - but that didn't stop the claustrophobic feeling building in my chest. Unable to hide my embarrassment, I did my best to hide behind Jenny. The woman was patting my head gently.

'Everything's Ok Orion. We'll get you something else now…'

Her sharp almond eyes held pity rather than understanding. Jenny was running a hand between my slender ears and I pulled back quickly, teeth bared. She was treating me like a pup! And in front of all these humans too! What was going on? There were people and food and drink and humans and the scent of the food was like nothing I had ever smelled before! It was so thick in the air. Inhaling deeply and I could almost taste it! Twitching my nose and I was met with layer upon layer of scented treats. Sugar, chocolate, fruit, and berries!

Lifting my snout into the air, I snorted as if I could digest the smell alone.

'Orion.' Jenny was trying to pet me again but I ducked away from her hand. 'it's ok boy…'

I growled. No. It was not OK. Why was there so much food but not enough for me? A shock discharged up my arm and bounced between my vertebrae but in this state, it felt like a small tickle.

'Orion.' Jenny sounded desperate, 'ORION!'

It wasn't a shout but it could have been. Snapping back to reality, I found Mellisa stood before me. My snout was pressed against her stomach. I must have bumped into her, too focused on following the trail of scents before my nose. At this point I would have preferred the shock compared to her wrath. There was a bright fire burning in the backs of her eyes that meant only one thing.

I was in a lot of trouble.

Standing up straight, I let my tail drop and ears perk up in attention. I'd learnt to keep my eyes on her feet and hands by my side, mostly in a stance of submission. Whatever was going to happen, It was better that surrendered to my face. Melissa knew best.

'I'm sorry Mel' I spoke as clearly as I could to my trainer, too scared to meet her eyes. 'Bre...The food and…'

I trailed off. Melissa had recently started to demand for explanations for whatever mistakes I had committed. Following on from a few attempts to avoid her wrath, I'd learnt that I should tell the truth as best I could. That didn't make it any easier.

'I...I lost control.' I stated, although my voice cracked as I did so. The shear act of admitting the mistakes brought tears to my eyes.

My trainer was dressed up like the other humans. I could barely detect her scent through the fake perfumes. The costume she wore was dazzling and displayed areas that seemed to make her seem even more human. If it wasn't for the malevolence in her pale face, I doubt I would have recognised Melissa. However, the bond between a Pokémon and trainer was still there - and for now it seemed to be a tether of pure displeasure and disapproval.

What she did next shocked me. I was already cowering, visibly shaking in a way to make myself look weak. In doing so, I hoped Melissa would spare me any severe punishments. I naturally shrink away from her touch, but was surprised to find she'd put an arm gently around my shoulder. It was almost affectionate - even if slightly firm. Melissa turned my attention away from the table even as my eyes refused to leave the banquet. Fighting off a whine took all my strength.

'Orion!' Melissa must have sensed my distress, 'We've got a special treat lined up for you in your prep room. I know that you'd like our food, but you do remember what happened last time don't you?' Her voice was sickly sweet, something that seemed completely foreign coming from the woman.

The forceful reminder of my last encounter with human food made my skin crawl. Stealing chocolate from one of the lab technicians had resulted in a trip to the vet and getting my stomach pumped. How was I supposed to know that chocolate was poisonous? After nearly an hour of sugar-fueled delirium I could vaguely remember being found by an aid some point later, caked in my own vomit. The experience was up there with one of the worst in my life.

'Are you listening Orion?'

I grumbled, but nodded at last, 'Yes Mel.'

'Good.' She stated flatly, stealing me towards a tall man who was eyeing me curiously. The human had the uniform that indicated he worked for Melissa, but that did little to help me relax. I craned my neck around to find that Jenny had already disappeared into the crowd. Many were still watching me with strangely pleasant smiles of their faces.

'Can you take Orion through to prepare for the demonstration? Get him some lunch too before the showcase.'

The aid nodded and I bowed my head, knowing that for whatever reason I was being removed from the event. Things like this always happened, it didn't seem fair. I guess I had failed again. Jenny had told me to behave myself but I'd ended up acting like an Umbreon again. How could I help the fact? I hadn't be bad and the humans always wanted me to act like something I wasn't. It was like Melissa couldn't decide if she wanted a human or a Pokémon. Maybe I was a mix of both?

'I'll see you later Orion.' My trainer ruffled my hair before stroking my ears in a gentle caress that sent a shiver down my spine. Perhaps she still loved me after all? I wagged my tail, closing my eyes briefly in a show of trust. I was still wagging my tail when the aid called me away. The man didn't even smile as the led me away in silence, trotting through some double doors back into the compound. It was only a few minutes later that the scents of the human party died away.

A few minutes later and I only had the awkwardly fitting garments to remind me that the event had happened at all. A few minutes later and I was left with my lunch, licking out the bowl as I soundly remembered that Melissa had promised me something special. But the slop was the same, as were the motions in preparation for another training session. Barely an hour had passed before I once again found myself in the arena.

Only this time I wasn't chained down.

I was confused at the lack of constraints, but knew that I had already upset my trainer enough today. So, steadying my breath, I descended into the zone of calm and readied myself. Already my body was shifting into a more natural state as my muscles relaxed. The world seemed to flatten, losing all colour as I called forth the smouldering black energy seething in my stomach. It felt good to settle once more into my battle stance, letting the sensation of raw power seep into my bones. When in this state there was no today or tomorrow - only the present moment. The fight was all that mattered.

My body crackled with darkness that seemed to project outwards in waves.

My vision narrowed as I blinked my crimson eyes, pupils shrinking to form narrow slits. I could feel my rings glowing, the little fur left on my body standing on end.

Normally it would be dead silent in the huge arena. Today was different. Over the faint whirring of the hologram technology coming to life, my ears picked out the sound of human voices. The black lobes swiveled, honing in on the noise seemed to come from behind the concrete walls. Sinking into the blank calm of pure instinct, my brain naturally located the noise and filtered out the background static. People must have been in the viewing gallery, hidden behind over three inches of glass. The only reason I knew that was because I had once broken through it. But now the glass was over twice as thick and reinforced by steel fibres.

There was a reason they chained me when I was like this.

Solidly, I placed each paw down on the cold stone and waited.

The air vibrated.

 _'…following on from earlier tests.'_ A long pause, ' _Of course, the subject was engineered to be susceptible to the viral stimulant. Exposing any normal human and Pokémon to the stimulant would result in permanent and potentially life threatening disfigurement. Thankfully, our forward thinking when Orion was still an embryo means that later transcription of designed RNA packages focused on…'_

My ears flickered at the noise, trying to ignore the speech. Obviously, somebody was talking prior to my training session. Maybe it had to do with all the humans hanging around earlier? Had Jenny warned me of this? Wrinkling up snout a little, I let my slender ears train themselves into the right positions. Each acted as a radar, filtering out the sound of pin drop over the vibration of cooling fans.

The noise amplified as coherent words, blossoming outwards from the vibrations.

 _'…repetition of what was said this morning!'_ The voice was amplified suddenly. ' _We'll see Orion perform now and see the influence that the viral stimulant has had on his body. This one and only strand of the medicine was engineered specifically for the subject. It enhances chosen Pokémon characteristics including agility and power, making him stronger than any known Pokémon in existence.'_

It was hard to make out who was speaking or the low rumbled of the human voices.

 _'So! Any questions?'_

Whatever followed was drowned out by the noise of the arena mechanisms flaring to life. A high pitched squeal was followed by creaking noises of steel on steal. Like had happened thousands of times previously, black devices appeared from suddenly openings in the arena dome. The whole room came to life as the extraction fans kicked up dust from the floor into tiny whirlwinds. My fur rippled and I lifted my tail nimbly as a counterbalance, ready to dodge any surprise attacks.

A small rumble shook the arena as the hologram sprung to life.

With a huge brain-shattering roar, I stared numbly up at the Articuno. The huge bird rose to four or five time my height, lifting itself off the ground with huge dazzling wings. Already, the air temperature had dropped a few degrees and I bounced into action. There was no time to admire the bird as it shot a storm of icy bullets in my direction.

I rolled across the floor, skidding into a agile turn so as to come broadside against the beast. At this point I'd fought nearly every legendary in existence, fighting off illusions which had simulated powers that were off the charts. Not to mention that each was built like a tank, leaving me with nothing but a grueling game of cat and mouse to taken down the huge Pokémon.

I missed the hyper beam by three hairs.

Retaliating with a Double Team, I hid amongst my own illusions so as to come at the bird from behind. Already it was destroying my copies with a furious Icy Wind slowly being trained in my direction. Shooting a machine-gun like volley of shadow balls, I drew the Articunos attention to it's left before throwing myself to the right. Next came a Feint Attack - Giga Impact combo, even as I fought off a hastily thrown Headbutt.

The blizzard caught me off guard.

In an instant the arena was a white mist of nothing, the Articuno hiding in the hailstorm of icy projectiles. There was nothing left to do put pull off a poor Pursuit, hoping to locate the hologram before it found me first.

The next Hyperbeam missed my tail by the width of a hair. Yelping in shock, I turned to face the emerging bird and snarled nastily. The hologram responded in turn, the bird bellowing in defiance - even as simulated blood oozed from under one blue wing.

That was...effortless?

In fact, the rest of the battle went more smoothly than it normally did. Within a few minutes I'd pulled of a rather rushed Secret Power, followed by a Faint attack before a Hyper Beam of my own.

The Legendary fell within a chilly cloud of dust before disappearing. Why was it so much easier than before? It usually impossible to take out the God with only a handful of hits. I had barely broken into a sweat.

I shivered in the chill, feeling my the cold air burn the inside of my lungs. Shrugging off the extreme cold, I steadied my breath and pushed away the call of black energy inside. Not being as fatigued as I usually was made ignoring the allure of power more difficult than it should have been. However, I quickly returned to my former self when the lab technician offered to take me out to somewhere warm. They never did this, why now? All I could do was bob my head slowly, and following him into the check-up room.

Normally they're wave me through such procedures to ensure I was in good health.

But like everything else, today was different.

There was a nurse to help, and she offered me a warm smile. Indicating for me to take a seat on the edge of the examination table, I narrowed my eyes in confusion. What was going on? She even offered me a slip of paper which looked like some miniature poster out of a book. The words were too long for me to recognise, and I tilted my head uncertainty.

'It's a lot of faff, isn't it?' She broke the silence at last, checking the watch hanging from her uniform. 'We've got visitors today so I'm making sure you get a proper checkup! Don't want to start a riot out there do we?'

She flashed a warm grin but I struggled to return it. For a moment the nurse's eyes had flickered to the glass wall and I wondered if more humans were stood behind it. Shaking off such a thought, I returned my attention to the short woman. Her face looked familiar, but I doubt I'd seen her for at least a few weeks. Already, she had banages out and was wrapping my arm carefully. I couldn't even remember getting more than a scratch there.

'A riot?' I asked, 'What do you mean?'

I studied the glass wall, but the nurse neatly stood in my field of view.

'Yes. It's a special day today isn't it and some people came to watch you train!' Her overly patronising voice frustrated me and I flicked my ears, narrowing my eyes a little to show my discomfort.

'Faff' I stated, struggling to get my mouth around the word, 'What's _faff_?'

The nurse looked at me quizzically.

'Today I mean. Today is a lot of faff. You know? A nuisance.'

Her eyes had flickered back to the glass again as she finished. The nurse was dressed in clean white clothes like everyone else that had ever worked here. I was told that it was white for hygiene reasons, but I didn't understand how. Then again, I found it hard to imagine humans dressed in anything different. Until earlier today that was. Were those fancy clothes what people normally wore?

'I doubt you know what's going on. Do you?' The nurse was getting some equipment ready. I watched her slowly, ensuring that she didn't get out anything potentially threatening. Medical people often had sharp or pointy things which were often painful. I didn't trust them. Especially the masks the had the chemical gas that made me pass out.

I growled at the mere thought. That made the nurse look up suddenly and I feigned a smile.

'You ok?' She asked at last. Concern was laced within her voice.

I nodded. She had pale brown eyes which watched me with a slight frown. There was a sad expression on her face which I quickly deciphered as being pity. With a sigh, she adjusted her hair and picked up a pot of cream. I could smell the ointment from a few feet away and wrinkled my nose in disgust.

'You know. Quite a few of the guests were worried about you. They saw what happened before lunch and...well…' She trailed off, 'I guess you can be adorable sometimes. Come on. This will help.'

The last was said as I cowered a little below her hands, but I stayed put. Adorable. Seriously? Grumbling under my breath seemed to unnerve the nurse a little. Picking up a small flashlight, she forced on pleasant smile.

'Sorry. As you have already guessed, we're being watched right now. So I'm going to be fussing you a little more than normal. Not that we don't care for you…' She trailed off, apparently unsure whether that comment was appropriate. 'Anyways! I'm going to shine this in your eyes briefly. It's nothing to worry about.'

I let her lift the thing to my snout. Not looking directly into the beam, I held myself still as she flashed the light from one eyes to the other. I saw my vision dilate before narrowing. The flashlight was quickly put away and I blinked the feeling away, only to find she was now inspecting my ears.

My tail was sore from sitting on the metal work surface and I wriggled uncomfortably.

'You ok?' The nurse added and I nodded stiffly, 'Good to hear. I saw you had a near-miss out there with that hyper beam, it's good you dodged in time or we'd be patching you up proper. And Melissa wouldn't like that in front of her guests would she?'

All I could do was keep nodding.

'Why are they here?' I pondered out loud, not expecting the nurse to reply. The leather strap around my wrist was starting to rub against my skin. A couple of small blisters had already formed from my short training session. I wasn't use to having the material bound around my wrist.

'Oh…' She paused for a moment to study me. 'I see. Well it's because she's finally going to be…'

She trained off, putting her hands on her hips.

'How do I explain this? Everyone here that's been helping you train have designed a medicine that makes you stronger. Now Melissa wants to sell it to other people to raise funds for your adventure.'

'Adventure?' I didn't sound right.

The nurse bobbed her head, putting a cold hand against my forehead suddenly. Our eyes met and she offered a warm smile.

'Well you look healthy. I'm happy to let you go.'

'Adventure?' I repeated, letting my ears fall back against my head in a show of dissatisfaction. For a second the nurses eye flicked towards the glass wall. Sighing heavily, she peeled off her plastic blue gloves.

'Yes. You know? To Mount Coronet. Melissa has been planning this trip for a very long time. Do you think you're ready?'

I just started back at her blankly. So that's what this was all about. Melissa was making money so she could take me to the biggest mountain in Sinnoh. That was the place where I was supposed to fight? This was everything she'd been training for and Melissa hadn't told me? Maybe my trainer had simply forgotten...but that wasn't like her.

'I...didn't know' I whispered to myself. Already my mind was thinking over the consequences.

'Oh. Almost forgot.' The nurse pulled out a device which I had been told measured the pressure of my blood. 'Let's put this on you.'

After donning a new set of blue gloves, the nurse set up the small machine a wrapped a tight bit of plastic around my bicep. I'd been told my blood pressure was usually low, but that could have meant anything. All I knew was that I hated having the machine constrict tightly around my arm. Gritting my teeth, I stuffed the growl in my throat back down into my stomach. The checks were bringing back memories of training from years previously, and I grumbled as I recalled my younger self reacting poorly to such procedures.

'Don't try to move, it'll take longer to calibrate correctly. Ok?'

There was a strange feeling in my chest - like everything had collapsed into a void. How long had I been preparing for this? And now that the time was finally approaching...I felt empty somehow. This was my purpose. I was trained to take on the strongest Pokémon in battle just like Melissa wanted me to. I should be happy now, right? This was everything I had ever dreamed of! Right? The chance to take on the Gods themselves...

I silenced my thoughts and turned my attention back to the aid. She was in the processes of stripping the plastic off my arm. Perking up my ears at the sight of her closing up the medikit, I thought everything would be over until a small object appeared on her finger. It was a shiny sticker which she slapped onto my chest. Smiling brightly, she waved me towards the door.

'That's it for today. See you soon Orion!'

I refused to get up off the table.

'Bre said that people were here to buy medicine?' I reiterated. Of all the people I had seen today, the nurse alone was the only person that seemed willing to tell me what was happening. I don't think that Melissa would have approved. Most of the aids often ignored me completely. That didn't stop the nurse from chatting.

'Yes, it's a pharmaceutical patent for that warped virus we've been working on since...well since her husband passed away.'

I sniffed. Jenny had told me this story before. Melissa's husband, and by extension Jenny's father, was a very important person. He had died mysteriously, leaving Melissa distraught and as a result she'd…'

'Orion?' The nurse ruffled my head fondly, 'Are you alright?'

Nodding, I used my years of practice to hide the tears. It was because of Melissa's husband that I existed. I was the one who was supposed to take on the Gods and bring him back. Nobody had explained how I would do that - only that I could. I had been trained nearly everyday of my life for that single purpose. And now that day was almost here, it was hard to imagine it all.

'Off you go then.' The nurse motioned towards the door again. 'Jenny should be waiting for you outside. And don't touch the bandages!'

It was best not to think about it at all, just as both Mother and Melissa had told me.

Hopping down from the medical bench, I thanked the aid silently before heading out into the hallway. Jenny wasn't there, in fact nobody was. Perking my ears up for any signs of anyone nearby, I scanned the whitewashed corridor and waited patiently. Glancing back at the aid, she waved her hands in something which could only be described as a shooing motion.

A few minutes later Jenny arrived and, almost out of breath, directed me back through the network of hallways and rooms. She was wearing the same clothes she had on before, but checked over my wounds sympathetically.

'You did very well Orion. I think you impressed everyone.'

I grunted, not wanting to talk about the session. Jenny must know about what was happening - but hadn't even brought up the conversion. Sensing my indignation, the woman let me sulk in silence. That didn't last long as a few moments later we found Mellissa waiting for us in a the staff room foyer. I wagged my tail happily upon seeing my trainer, and she gave my ears a brief scratch before talking to her daughter in a rather business like manner. Meanwhile, I did my very best to remain focused on their conversation. Now I had an inkling of what was going on, it made sense to find out as much as I could. Asking Melissa directly would be a very bad idea.

It was hard to believe it was actually happening.

Just thinking about that brought another bubble to my chest. It was a strangely unpleasant feeling and I pushed the thoughts away again. Mother hadn't even made herself known yet today. I was already missing her warm comfort.

'Of you go then.' Melissa disturbed my mindless worry with her sharp voice, 'I'll be seeing you after everything has finished up.'

Bouncing to attention, I'd found my trainer had already stalked off towards what sounded like a very busy breakroom. Jenny didn't seem to want to talk much as she led me round to another room within the staff area. This was usually the cafeteria, but had been set up with lots of seats. Only the faint whiff of food was still in the air, now replaced by the scent of the poorly lain carpet to cover stained floorboards. A short stage had been set up at the back of the room. Thankfully, Jenny led me to the opposite end where some plush chairs had been set aside.

'Why don't you rest their for a bit and I'll get you a drink?'

I nodded tiredly, the fatigue of my brief training session already catching up with me. Closing my eyes briefly to try and focus on my whirlwind of corners, I didn't noticed drifting off to sleep. It was only the gentle but persist tap on my shoulder which woke me.

'Time to get up now…'

I growled at Jenny to leave me alone. Only then did I realise my mistake.

With a startle, I found myself curled up on the chair with my tail hung limply, brushing against the floor. Humans were starting to enter through the double doors, all chatting loudly as they found their own seats. They all sat with their backs to us, but I could still notice a few eyes wander in our direction. I recognised Sam, the boy who I'd met earlier grinning as he held conversation with a well dressed woman.

Turning to give Jenny an apologetic flash of puppy-dog eyes, I was somewhat alarmed to find her glaring harshly. With a finger she tapped me on the nose. It didn't hurt, at least not physically. What stung was the fact that it was Jenny who did it. This wasn't the little teenager which used to sit with me on the grass and talk about the stars. No this wasn't the girl that I used to know.

With a loud tut, her face softened at last. The woman looked exhausted and she failed to pull-off a tired smile.

'Wakey Wakey. This is the important bit. We get to see who bids for the special medicine.'

I frowned, still trying to get my sleeping brain to function. All I could do was nod, pulling myself up into a more respectable seating position.

'This is for bre battle, isn't it?' I spoke in a small voice.

Jenny turned to look at me in a way that was surprisingly nonchalant.

'Yes. Melissa is selling everything now and...yes Orion. This is for your battle.'

Her brown eyes were sad as she cast them up to the stage. For a moment I could see the old, cheerful Jenny I knew in the reflection of them, before I looked at the stage as well. We watched Melissa climb up before the crowd of people. Everyone clapped and after the noise had dived down, I asked in the bravest voice I could.

'You still miss your father? It's been so long umb...and I'll try.'

It seemed unnecessary to add that the only reason I was sat here was for the very purpose. Perhaps I'd finally come to terms with my situation, but it seemed to far away. Even now as other people started to congregate on the stage and the humans cheered, it felt like the beginning of the end.

My hackles rose when I felt a arm placed around my shoulders. Breathing stiffly, I let Jenny calm me as a tangle of emotions fought within my head. Eyeing her curiously, I wasn't sure what to say upon seeing the tears from around her eyes. A single trail was running down her cheek.

'It's ok. I'm sorry that this had to happen Orion. In the end, I promise. It'll be ok.'

I leaned against her, and tried to let the world feel right once more.

* * *

-AZURE-

* * *

For all that was in the world, in this place there only seemed to be steel and concrete. Both were reinforced and whitewashed in a lime render that did little but highlight fire damage. That, along with impact scars and water damage, appeared ubiquitous across the large enclosure. The arena was built like a bunker but with the opposite in mind - keeping things inside rather than sheltering them from the devastation outside. LED strip-lights shone too brightly, flickering now and then with loud buzzing vibrations.

Such a room made things look smaller - or you at least lost your perspective of size. There was nothing to compare anything against. The bullet-proof glass screens in the far corner possibly ranged from centimeters to metres. The very grains in the stone could have been the size of atoms or mountains. It was easy to lose yourself in such a room.

Above the sound of the fizzling electrics, a female voice climbed into a broken shout.

Melissa bellowed over the intercom,

'THAT is your _purpose_ Orion! THAT is what you were _designed_ to do and that is what you _shall_ do whether you like it or NOT!'

Inside the observatory room, the woman lifted her shaking hands to organize her hair. Pulling spidery fingers through her overly smooth opal locks did little to calm her aggression. The mass of curls acted to frame a narrow face that seemed to be at odds with the look of the woman. Flat eyes of steel lacked any and all emotion. Wrinkles catching the underside of her cheeks indicated she hadn't smiled for years. Her lips were pressed into a grim, pale line.

Bony hands held onto a small black controller that was pointed at the creature in front of her. Even through nearly four inches of glass, the IR beam could reach the boy's chunky collar.

Orion was recognisable as the old teenage boy in the centre of the arena. He had the ears and tail of an Umbreon, not to mention the glowing red eyes of the species. The young man was skinny to the point that his muscles seemed to cling to a framework of bones. Black fur tufted out from under his threadbare grey clothing, disguising his otherwise humanoid appearance. The fur was the only thing that acted to cover the parts of him that were scarred, burnt, singed, or bruised from the torment of years of training. Around his neck hung a bulky shock collar, spanning most of his shoulders with the extra capacitors that had been added over the years.

His face still held some of that boyish look, although now all he appeared to show was pure anguish. Orion was pulling back as the coarse chain that kept him tied to the centre of the arena. Even then, he had backed away as far as he could. Hunched over, the Umbreon-morph had his arms wrapped around his legs as he fought to make himself as small as possible.

Tears streamed down his face.

'I c..c..can't Mmmel. I can't br...bre...do it!'

His rings were glowing fiercely, swirling round in unsettling blinding colours of gold and yellow. The motions of the light display seemed to mimic the teenager's emotions as he fought back tears. Only high-pitched whines broke his sobbing.

Melissa had seen enough. She'd decided to head out of the observation room and punched open the button controlling the huge steel door into the arena. Striding across the stone floor, the woman seemed unaffected by the show of emotion. Towering over the hybrid only seemed to make the Umbreon appear small. Melissa kicked the boy with a solid thwack into the side to get his attention. It was only after she had Orion's red gaze fixed on her that she bent down, staring-out the boy in a death-glare that could have melted flesh from bone.

Melissa's tired eyes that lacked all hope, love, and affection. Instead, these had been replaced with the cold maniacal gaze of a person who desired only one goal.

Revenge.

'I don't understand Orion.' Melissa tutted loudly, 'Are _you_ telling me you're not strong enough to take on this Pokémon? After _everything_ I have done for you?'

There was silence, but for the hybrid's gentle sobbing. After a few moments Orion pulled himself together, his ears lowering as he struggled to speak through the tears.

'She...She is the Creator! I cannot destroy…'

Without warning the boy yelped loudly. It was a purely animalistic sound as Orion cried out, spasming as the shock collar took full effect. His body went rigid before toppling without control onto the hard concrete. And there he stayed.

The hybrid's chest rose and fell heavily as he regained his breath.

Melissa seemed unfazed by the torture she had just caused, spinning the controller round in one hand. A worn wedding ring hung loosely off her finger and it clicked noisily against the black remote.

'Let me rephrase that question, _vermin_ , for you have no choice on the matter. Come this time next week we _will_ be leaving for Mount Coronet where you _will_ fulfill your purpose. So there is no question Orion. You _will_ do AS I SAY.'

The morph whined loudly, 'I caaaAAHHH…!'

Orion was interrupted by another bolt of pain coursing through his body. The capacitors had recharged and sent yet another dose of electricity tore through the morph's body. Writhing on the floor, the Umbreon was in too much torment to do anything but cry tears through the electrocution. Gasping for breath like a Magikarp out of water, there was nothing the boy could do.

He collapsed in defeat, retching loudly as his stomach tried to empty its contents. Panting noisily, he rolled the feeling back into his jaw, and the feeling back into his spine. A dark pain existed behind his eyes, like a black cloud that started to fill him head.

'She is the creator.' Orion got out in gasps. 'There..'

'I AM YOUR MASTER.' Melissa cut through fiercely, 'I am commanding you Orion. FIGHT.'

The Umbreon had his eyes squeezed closed as a trickle of blood appeared behind the leather of his collar.

'The...The balance of the w..world could be…BREee!'

'ORION!' Melissa kicked the boy in the stomach and this time he was sick. She didn't care however, as she reached down and pulled the boys rolling head to one side; digging her nails into an long Umbreon ear. 'LOOK at me when I TALK to YOU!'

For a long moment it was as if the boy was questioning whether he wanted to give up there and then. Sprawled across the floor, he was barely breathing anymore. For a long while he failed to respond. Then, with a wince, he cracked his eyes open. They were glowing maroon silhouettes which were too unfocused to create a picture of the misery he lived in. Even his eyes couldn't fathom the hell his life had suddenly become.

'You c..can't take on…' Orion was struggling to speak, 'The world needs balance...'

Orion blinked, but still his vision failed to materialize.

Melissa bent down slowly, muscles tensing with the ease and grace of a Ekans ready to strike. Dispassionately, she reached out a finger and brushed a stray black hair across the teenager's forehead. Orion was gleaming sweat and with cold unconcerned look, Melissa rubbed the moisture off her hands down the fabric or her jeans.

'Why are you are so rebellious my pet? You believe those fairytales about Vetra and the Legendaries maintaining peace? Do you understand what they did to my family? What they stole from ME!? After all this time I thought you had learnt to love your master - and that she knows best? But sometimes when you misbehave...well...you're no better than the other _vermin_ those trainers call Pokémon...'

Melissa's voice was eerily sweet. It was a hollow mimicry of how she used to speak to Jenny. But there was no emotion in her tone as the woman forced out a heavy sigh.

'They did this! You will fix it Orion.'

The Umbreon-morph whined, whether it was from fear or panic was unknown.

Melissa seemed unruffled,

'You know why you are here Orion. Only dark types can use the Azure Flute to access the Hall of Origin. And you were chosen Orion. Out of all the hybrids I tried to create, you were the only one that worked! A 10 % chance of success they said, who's laughing now! And now you have the ultimate prize that any Pokémon would crave. This is your chance to battle with the greatest legendary of all time!'

She pursed her lips, eyeing the boy who seemed to be frozen in place from a combination of paralysis and the fear of upsetting his master - His master who had the power to cripple him instantaneously with a press of a switch. And even when that was taken away from her, Melissa's very voice could call upon a pain more intense then any training injury. This was his master who had trained him from birth to become the strongest living weapon of all time. Melissa had no consideration for cost, nor empathy, nor understanding of the monster she had created.

His Master. The woman who had lost her husband and with that her entire world.

Melissa, in her anguished and deranged state had fallen into a furious insanity. She had the drive not only to resurrect her husband from the grave, but to take down the very legendary beings which stopped her from doing so. It was not enough that they took her beloved, they had to suffer. She would break the very fabric of the universe if she had to. She would challenge the Gods themselves.

So far, it had taken nearly two decades to do that. But she was close. Oh so close! With the help of her inherited medical business empire, she could siphon off as much money to fund her lust for revenge. With the cutting edge of bioengineering behind her, Melissa had created the ultimate weapon capable of cheating death itself: A dark type able to sneak into the Hall of Origin and defeat the very Legendaries who had scarred this earth. Melissa had created an Umbreon with enough power to if not destroy the Gods, at the very least pull back the soul of her husband from the dark beyond.

But Orion refused to fulfill his destiny.

Ever so slowly, the teenager came to his senses.

'Bre...bre um...um…' Orion had to mouth the words a few time before he could make the sounds required in his throat, 'I can't do it!' The boy was practically crying.

Melissa sighed, laying a hand on the boy's head in such a tender manner it seemed completely out of place with the pain she had inflicted on the morph only minutes before.

'Rest little one. I know you are scared. But just think! A few weeks time and you would have beaten the strongest Pokémon in existence, returned a soul from the divide, and can spend the rest of your days frolicking in the forest to your heart's content with your mother…'

The woman paused, before mumbling darkly.

'That is what you were born to do. You were made to put things right. No more control. No more Gods.'

Upon uttering those words, the image froze. Time slowed down to a crawl and an eventual stop. The tape had come to the end of the track and was awaiting turning, as if to play the side B in reverse.

The silence that remained appeared infinite.

* * *

BLUE ON BLUE

* * *

At last until I pulled myself out of the memories.

It was like dragging myself out of a deep, bottomless lagoon. Afterimages of the terror clung to my consciousness still, even as I attempted to dry off the snippets of past, present, and future. The hologram faded and I returned to myself - becoming starkly aware that I was no longer looking through my own eyes. For all purposes it was as if I was inhabiting Hauser's body. I could feel his presence even as I gasped for breath.

After what had just happened, by brain struggled to make sense of everything.

Music floated softly into my awareness. The piano chords tickled at my memory before I recognised the tune. It was Nina Simone, with the classic tune of 'My Baby Just Cares for Me' sounding from what could have only been a vinyl player. The static lofi crackle in the background added a warm quality to the music. I knew the song but it was far from music I enjoyed. And this was playing in Orion's mind?

' _Where are we?'_ I thought out loud, feeling the words sink into the awareness of the Lucario.

At last my eyes seemed to work, or at least Hauser became aware of his vision returning. It was hard to tell the difference between the two of us at this point. Our awareness seemed to have merged to the point that our actions had become one. Was this what it was supposed to feel like?

It was only then that I felt the Lucario's voice as if from a distance.

' _I do not understand what this place is.'_

We were stood in some kind of kitchen.

When I say 'we' I mean we were both stood in the kitchen, staring at each other with confusion on opposite sides of a large wooden table. The simple awareness that I was back inside my body was beautifully refreshing and I took a moment to study my hands. Everything seemed exactly like it should have been - bar the fact that Hauser and I were stood in a somewhat eerie kitchen. Everything looked like it should have, but seemed out of place. Checkered vinyl floor, stout tables and chair, and then a sideboard lined with cupboards. Even an old window looking across a well-kept cottage garden. It was too normal.

A child's crayon drawing was stuck to the fridge door. It seemed to depict a number of trees in a grassy field, though the coarse rendering was difficult to decipher. The fact that the sky was a darker shade of purple than it should have been was somewhat disturbing. A small farm was badly drawn sat in the middle of it all.

'Hauser?' I asked, feeling my words roll around my tongue. 'We're still in his mind...right?'

' _Certainly.'_ The Lucario nodded slightly, ' _But this is unlike anything I've ever known.'_

Hauser seemed to consider his words carefully.

It was at that exact moment that a young Leafeon padded his way into the kitchen. Sniffing at the air slightly, the Pokémon seemed completely unaware of the two strangers stood in the room. In fact, he pretty much walked through the Lucario on his way over to a few water bowls placed next to the fridge. Hauser seemed to be a little more than a hologram.

For some reason, that seemed to relax the Pokémon. The Lucario grinned, showing white teeth,

' _That's better. This is what it should have been like. Whatever happened before, we seem to be in Orion's memories now…'_ Hauser trailed off, pacing the kitchen as he explored the small room. The Leafeon sniffed around at my feet - though I had to remind myself that this was in no way real. That became an even bigger challenge when a young Orion skidded through the door.

The boy looked exactly like he should have been - apart from being a few years younger. He had a wide grin on his face as he slid to a stop, bare feet providing little grip on the vinyl. In a pair of tattered beige shorts and a thin checkered shirt, Orion even went as far to complete the look with a battered green rain jacket. It was a struggle to stop myself from laughing. The teenager took a moment to find the Leafeon in the kitchen before speaking warmly.

'Umbre um umm bre.'

My ears didn't recognise the sound and I sent a questioning look towards Hauser.

The Lucario was crouching slightly, watching Orion closely over the length of his black snout. Hauser seemed transfixed by the Umbreon-morph, studying the teenager like an exhibit in a museum. Not wanting to disturb the Pokémon, I didn't have to wait long before Orion jogged out of the kitchen with the Leafeon in-tow. Only then did Hauser sigh heavily, scratching at his ears.

'What is it?' I asked, 'Why couldn't I understand him?'

' _Because he was speaking Pokémon.'_ Hauser shrugged, before patting at his fur, ' _But this doesn't work. He called that Leafeon his father! So if this is his past - then what did we just experience in that compound? It makes no sense…'_

The Lucario rubbed his temples.

' _People don't have two pasts.'_ He mumbled, scratching at his face in frustration. ' _You wanna check this out?'_ He asked at last, fixing me with an intense red-eyed stare. My brain was still trying to catch up with everything that just happened.

'What was that place? It was like Orion was some kind of animal! They...the…' The bottom had dropped out of my stomach. 'They made the virus for him! That's what we saw right? They created the virus to make Orion stronger but for some reason...they…'

' _Calm down Fenn.'_ Hauser stepped towards my, balancing lightly on his paws. He placed a large paw on my shoulder, his crimson eyes level with my own. ' _We can't go jumping to conclusions. I don't know what we just experienced. Maybe it was some past trauma, or maybe it was just some internalised dream. We know Orion isn't well at the moment.'_

I just nodded,

' _There's more to Orion than meets the eye.'_ Hauser withdraw his paw before shrugging lightly, ' _You might end up with more questions than answers.'_

'And by that you're suggesting…?'

' _Humph.'_ The Lucario wrinkled up his nose, ' _I can see why you and Orion get on so well. Let's see where we've found ourselves. You alright to carry on?'_

All I could do was nod gently, trying to steady my breath. I didn't point out that Hauser had stealthy avoided my own line of inquiry. Deciding that now might not be the best time to pursue those concerns, I headed towards the door and popped my head through. On the other side was a narrow hallway, as well a staircase to the floor above. Sneaking across to check out what was behind the other doors, my attention was caught by a photo on the wall. It was a family snap of a middle-aged man and woman, both smiling happily as they sat on a picnic blanket with a small boy between them. Orion was beaming happily, with his hand wrapped in warm hug around two Leafeons.

'Look at this.' I waved Hauser over, 'This is Orion isn't it?'

' _Indeed. But he looks younger than what we saw him in those last...memories.'_

'Exactly.' I nodded in triumph, 'And you're sure that these are his real memories right?'

' _Positive.'_ Hauser agreed,

The Lucario studied the photo for a few moments, before turning his attention to the other doors coming off the hallway. At the base of the stairs, one was left ajar and the sounds of a television playing could be heard from the room inside. The simple sound of modern technology stung a little. This was what it was like before the virus. A snapshot of how life should have been.

The noise was coming from a living room. It was only small, with a window looking out across the countryside and a minor road trailing across the farmland. A few pictures dotted the windowsill, many of them showing what I could only guess were family and friends - and Orion of course. He seemed to appear frequently in the photos with a Leafeon or two at his side. He had said they were his parents? If the decorations were anything to go by, it appeared that his real parents were…

Wait one second.

I took another look at the photos.

In every photo Orion had the characteristic Umbreon ears and bright crimson eyes that he had now. Yet the numerous pictures of the young teenager were from years before the outbreak ever occurred. It was as if Orion had always been part Umbreon. Either that, or his memories had been so deformed by the infection that it had overwritten his past. Was that even possible?

Already my mind returned to our past experience which appeared shown Orion had been the design of some deranged organization. A lump came to my throat. I no longer felt so comfortable knowing that I was somehow rattling through the inside of Orion's mind.

'This isn't like Inception is it?' I asked Hauser quietly, 'We're not going to get stuck in limbo or anything.'

' _I have no idea what you mean.'_ The Lucario admitted from behind.

'Or maybe like the final Vetra movie. You know?' I explained briefly, 'With the evil Mudkip. You must have been there for that one. There was even a Lucario in the movie!'

It took Hauser a long few seconds to answer.

' _I don't think those human films are representative._ ' He spoke flatly. The Lucario wasn't really paying much attention. Once more, he was focused on Orion and the other inhabitants of the memory. The Umbreon-morph was snuggled up on a plush fabric sofa with the Leafeon he'd just disturbed from the kitchen. The Pokémon had his tail wrapped around the boy, and his muzzle leaning on his knee. It appeared they were both transfixed by the television. On an adjacent sofa perched an old woman, probably in her mid-fifties. She had a cup of tea perched on one had as she flicked through a newspaper.

Hauser and I were mere holograms, present but isolated from the situation laid before us.

An old cathode ray tube TV was playing a live Pokémon battle being filmed somewhere exotic. I couldn't place the arena, though the competition appeared rather heated between a Rhyhorn and a Hitmonchan. They were trading blows, with a deeply engrossed Orion completely absorbed in the action. Now and then he muttered something to his Leafeon companion, absently running a hand through their thick beige fur.

'What are they saying?' I asked Hauser. For a moment it was as if he was ignoring me, before finally the Lucario turned and offered me a small grin.

' _Orion is commenting on the battle.'_ He seemed to be chuckling at something, ' _Anyways. I'm intrigued and feel it's my responsibility to delve further._ ' I wasn't sure whether the Lucario was talking about Orion or the television show.

Meanwhile, I was still trying to make sense of everything. Had Orion been telling the truth in our meeting? I mean, he had called the Leafeon his dad! But it was like he had suddenly appeared in this house and I wasn't entirely sure if the images of Orion in the compound had been imaginary or not. It was like waking from a dream. Already, my recollection was fading.

My attention returned to Hauser sharply.

'You're not telling me everything are you?' I asked, trying to make my voice as firm as possible. Where before he had been studying the images flashing on the television, Hauser's expression seemed to harden. Any emotion across the steel-types greying muzzle was difficult to decipher. That didn't stop a bubble of uncertainty developing in my gut as he straightened.

' _It's complicated Fenn. I'm not sure how much…'_ He stopped suddenly, before rubbing at his eyes. With a sigh, the Lucario picked his words carefully, ' _You can't just force your way into people's memories. It's like sneaking through the back door, to use a more human analogy. What we saw was chaotic.'_

The activity in the living room continued as normal, the inhabitants of the illusion unaware of the heated conversation taking place in space before them.

'So those were his repressed memories? The things he'd forced to the back of his mind?'

The Lucario looked pained,

' _That is a rather crude way of putting it. But yes. It was like Orion's mind was...was…'_

Whilst Hauser struggled once more to find the correct words, I butted in with the question waiting on the tip of my tongue.

'That was a memory? What we saw really happened?'

Hauser nodded, puffing air through his nose in a clearly irritated.

' _If you don't keep bothering me with questions, I can focus on the matter to hand.'_

'Which is trying to find out what the matter is with Orion!' I flung my hands up in exasperation.

Hauser's eyes narrowed.

In my defense, I did a very good job of trying to stare him down. I wasn't someone who gave up easily.

' _I get it.'_ He crossed his arms, displaying the faded steel spikes extending from his paws, ' _You think Orion is the cause of the virus. Given what we saw, that is indeed a possibility. What we're seeing here now? No. It doesn't make sense.'_

He paused, fixing me with a grim stare,

' _So let me ask. Are you truly worried for Orion.'_

'YES.' I felt the need to shout, but held back. It didn't stop me biting off the end of the word fiercely.

For some reason, Hauser had burst out into a chuckle.

' _Let's get started then.'_ The Pokémon moved over to the living room door. Even though we were both holograms of some kind, he managed to close the door firmly. With a loud click the metal handle locked into place. Turning to me with a cheeky grin on the face, all I could do was stare. What was Hauser even doing?

Behind us, a teenage Orion curled up with the Leafeon completely unawares.

' _Right. You know what lucid dreaming is right? The easiest way to travel through memories is through expectation. So. What what do you want to see?'_

'Uhhh…' I struggled to make heads or tails of his sudden change in mood, 'How about when he was a younger?'

' _We can try.'_ Hauser opened the door in a smooth motion, pushing down the handle was a bit of difficult with his black paws. Instead of the hallway beyond as I'd assumed there would be - was a completely black void. The door opened onto vantablack nothingness. My eyes struggled to make sense of the complete lack of focus.

' _That's not right.'_ The Lucario closed the door once more, ' _Let's try again.'_

Once more the white living room door opened to reveal nothing but a shapeless black void.

Hauser turned to me with a deep frown,

' _Well. Apparently those memories don't exist.'_

His voice was deadpan.

From the kitchen, 'Blue Moon' was playing softly.

* * *

XXX

* * *

 _[_ _ **3.17**_ _] Kansas - Dust in the Wind (1977)_

 _I close my eyes, only for a moment, and the moment's gone_

 _All my dreams pass before my eyes, a curiosity_

* * *

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any events, location, and/or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. The views expressed by the characters and/or the narratives do not necessarily reflect the author's views. This fiction is rated T and may be unsuitable for young audiences. 'Fort Haste' is a fictional concept that is owned and regulated by ZenColour._


	7. Chapter 6

FH:WINTER

* * *

"Fort Haste: WINTER" is a recount of a tale set within the Pokémon world - one in which everything has gone wrong. Here we meet the final survivors as they struggle to endure through hell and beyond. An unknown virus has wiped-out most of humanity, leaving behind children which seem to be less affected by the disease. In an attempt to preserve what remains of humanity, Fort Haste was bodged in the months following the pandemic. Even now, the settlement remains at the very heart of the ongoing apocalypse. For everything that has happened and all the trials humanity has faced - Fort Haste stands as a vision of hope.

Please note, this and following chapters will contain both narrative and speech in various dialects and languages. Anything said in Pokémon will be underlined as shown. Normal speech will remain unaffected, although _italics_ and **bold** may be used for effect following standard rules. For whistle calls ***…something like this…*** will be used, and any random flashbacks are marked with {''}.

Fort Haste is a work of fiction written as a collaboration between ZenColour and Just-A-Reader0Love. Both are also very thankful for the additional help from Oblivion Wave Productions as our very own beta reader.

* * *

AUTHOR NOTES

* * *

Zen: _Hi again all. The team and I are aiming to get chapters out monthly, although there was a slight delay in proofreading this chapter due to my own busy schedule. Thanks for your patience! Now that this story is featured in the "Transformation and pokemorph stories" community there has been a huge increase in readership, so a warm hello to everyone new joining us!_ _This chapter marks the calm before the storm, as well as expanding on a few of the key characters in the FH universe. Enjoy!_

R'Love: _A lovely how do you do to any newcomers to this story, I hope you enjoy this chapter! It has been great fun working on this chapter._

* * *

 **HAYS SNH Version 5 (0076 PA)**

Forward written by I. K. Wyee [EXTRACT]

9000406227424 - Sinnoh Outreach Programme for Historical Preservation

 _Following what could only be called a fight for survival, the single surviving society within the exclusion zone rapidly evolved into a democracy in the following years. However, a government was not created sensu stricto. Instead the development of an economy derived from the specialisation of Hasties and Pokémon into pre-industrial job roles necessitated some form of organisational body. Although a socialist government was attempted in the early development of Fort Haste, a capital-driven welfare state resulted. This remains the predominant model maintaining the first independent state of the post V-DPP world._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 6**

* * *

An Extract from 'The Book of Hays'

 _They didn't know they were engineering a doomsday machine. But then again, he didn't know what he was either._

* * *

 **ORION's POV**

* * *

I thought that Fenn had told me everything.

Then again, I also thought that Matt had filled me in on what Fenn had missed out. The Leafeon-morph sat next to my bed for sometime that first evening. Unlike Fenn, the teenager appeared happy to talk about his day - having helped Mike rig up a low-wattage strip light to provide some extra UV light for the grass-type. Looking back, I wasn't sure whether I had dreamt up that idea or not. The boy looked rough, his mottled brown and green hair stood up all over the place. I dreaded to think what kind of state I was in.

For now, Hauser was all I had to keep me company. The Lucario was pleased to make small talk, his ears twitching merrily as he made a poor joke about the approaching winter. During the time I'd been out, the thermometer had dropped considerably. Given Fenn's strict instructions that I wasn't to leave until Jane had given me a full MOT, there wasn't much to do but wait. For some reason, Hauser had a bandage wrapped tightly around one paw. Standing next to the bed, he unthinkingly scratched at the material whilst staring out of the window.

Only the creaking of floorboards a few minutes later announced that somebody was climbing the stairs. Every sound echoed, seeming to reverberate all throughout the old farmhouse. Boredom made even such mundane things diverting.

Sitting up a little on the edge of the bed, I ran a hand through my hair. I didn't need a mirror to reveal the effect of the tiredness that clung to my face. I could feel the weight of my heavy eyelids as I blinked reality back into clarity.

Jane clicked the door open without knocking, squeezing through before shutting it lightly behind. A large hardcover book sat heavy in her arms. Once through she pushed her glasses back up her nose a little, only then taking a glance around the room. The teenager's eyes settled on me and she offered a weak smile.

'Oh. You're up. Feeling ok?'

I nodded, watching Jane from the corner of my eyes as she slid a chair over across the floorboards. Her book she set down on the seat gently. I didn't feel the need to point out the considerable distance she placed the chair from my bed. Or how wide a berth the teenager gave me, clearly trying not to get too close. Jane checked the bedside table and the half-empty glass of water that rested there. She even sniffed at the chamberpot which had been pushed to its hiding place under the mattress.

' _I'll go and get Fenn...'_ Hauser excused himself quietly.

'Thanks Hauser.' Jane thanked the Pokémon, watching him leave before puffing out a large sigh. I sat up a little, clearing my throat. The medic appeared to take that as a prompt that I was going to speak, but realised it wasn't an attempt to break the silence. I'd been stuck inside for the past few hours since she'd last seen me anyways. It wasn't like I had much to talk about.

Jane became aware of this fact rather quickly, breaking the silence.

'Did you want a hot drink or anything? I kinda forgot to grab any tea before I came.' She set the large medical tome onto her lap as if to give herself something to do.

'I could do with a toilet rather than a bucket.' I joked mildly, 'Though a hot drink would have been nice too.'

Jane sighed, looking at me over her glasses. 'It's the best we could do. I'm guessing Fenn explained about the sleeping pill incident…? She'll be along shortly anyways.'

'She did,' I verified, having to clear my throat again before continuing. 'You don't think that I could have reacted to it? Isn't there a list of stuff that this medication might do to people?'

Jane grunted in agreement, opening her book and searching for a page. I shivered slightly in the cold air as she made an effort of flicking through the pages. At first I thought she was going to find a list of side-effects. Instead the young adult earmarked a page.

'Right. You ready for this?'

'Ready for what? Fenn said…' I trailed off, fighting off the headache starting to throb in the back of my head. Rubbing my eyes for a moment, It took me an embarrassingly long time to form the right words. Jane waited patiently and I had a strange feeling of déjà vu.

'There's something you should know.'

'It's ok Orion.` Jane spoke empathetically, offering a poor attempt at a warm smile. 'Both Hauser and Fenn talked it through with me this morning. We agreed on...well I'll read out what I found. That'll help fill you in on everything.'

'Humph.' I pouted, not wanted to point out how badly everyone had been attempting that duty so far. I didn't know if Fenn was purposefully trying to leave me in the dark - or if they were hiding something suspicious. In this state, my mind kept favouring the latter. Jane ignored my grumbling. She frowned momentarily at the book in front of her, taking a breath.

'Orion…We think that you have a dissociative behavioural disorder.'

I was confused at what that actually meant. Sure, I had explained my episodes to Fenn only yesterday (at least I thought it was yesterday) so I wasn't expecting some...behavioural problem? Jane had a serious expression on her face. I returned the look blandly, not understanding the gravity of the situation that the medic was implying. Once more, she did that weird thing of licking her finger before turning a page. When it was clear I wasn't getting any further explanation anytime soon, I had to ask the teenager directly.

'By that...you mean?'

'It means that you may have periods where you, or what you experience, doesn't feel real. It also means that sometimes you may behave as different people.' Jane's voice was monotone as she quoted the text, 'People with the issue struggle to focus on what is real, and what is not. There's almost no information on treatment. All that I know is that is it usually caused by past trauma, typically during childhood. From what Hauser told me, that's most likely the case'

I nodded quietly, too scared to speak. My stomach had dropped through my feet as how accurately those words may have described my situation. So I was dissociative? That was a thing then? It wasn't just that I sometimes struggled to control my natural Pokémon instincts, it was that I struggled to deal with reality as a whole? My brain was trying to remember what happened over the past few days but to no avail. That added a sharp edge to my discomfort.

'Does...does that make sense?' Jane stuttered briefly, watching me with interest as I processed the revelation.

'You think so?' I asked at last, wiggling on the bed a little to get comfortable. It felt much colder that it should have been, making me pull my jacket more tightly around me.

'Well. What do you think?' Jane flicked over another page. Finding another block of text with her finger, she read a passage deliberately, 'Depersonalization disorder is marked by periods of feeling disconnected or detached from one's body and thoughts. The disorder is sometimes described as feeling like you are observing yourself from outside your body or like…'

Both of us jumped when the door opened. We'd both been too absorbed in Jane's slow reading to hear the sound of creaking floorboards. Fenn appeared, kicking open the door with one foot. She looked a little windswept, with rosy cheeks and a red nose from the cold air. Flashing a brief smile, she propped the door open for Hauser to squeeze through after. The greying Lucario eyed Jane and I expectedly, immediately picking up on the vibe of the room.

Fort Haste's medic swiveled in her chair, her glasses sliding back down her nose.

'That didn't take long.' She spoke bluntly, 'You nearly gave me a heart attack!'

'It's a good thing your our doctor. Means you can fix yourself up eh?' Fenn had a number of mugs carefully balanced between two hands. Chuckling at her own joke, the second in command placed the hot drinks down on the chest of draws in an effort to quickly avoid anymore spillages. After a moment to tidy her blonde hair, Fenn rested her hands on her hips and surveyed the room.

'Right. Down to business then?'

Fenn offered me a mug, raising an eyebrow when I declined. It didn't take a genius to realise why. She shrugged it off, handing a tea to jane. With a cup sat in her own hand, Fenn popped herself on the bed next to me.

'So we're all here to discuss how I'm going crazy right?' I twitched my nose, trying to make light of the deep feeling of discomfort in my chest. Fenn snorted, shaking her head momentarily before draining tea from the top of her mug.

'It's not that bad.' She stated mildly, itching at her hair for a moment. 'Well. Maybe...'

'That's not helping.' Jane interrupted the two of us. She set her book down on the floor before leaning back in her chair with her arms crossed. 'The real issue here is that we're all worried for you Orion. For the last what - four days? You've been behaving as a Pokémon. Now you seem to have woken out of that state...and you tell Fenn that it happens sometimes. Is it frequent? How often? What triggers it?'

The medic watched me sternly, even as my shoulders slumped.

'It just happens. I don't know how often, but I haven't done it for ages. Nothing really triggers it, unless maybe the sleeping pills did?' I gave a sharp glance towards Fenn. The teenager wasn't looking at me however, having reached down to pick up the medical tome Jane had abandoned on the floor.

'You know about what they did right?' I asked Jane, embarrassed at how difficult it was to keep the resent out of my voice. I itched at my neck out of a habit that should have died years ago. 'They went into my memories. Not to mention drugging me up!?'

Jane nodded stiffly,

'They were worried about you Orion.'

'Maybe next time why not try talking to me about it? Something like "Hey Orion. Feeling alright mate?" instead of...of violating my mind!'

My ears drew back naturally, my hackles rising as I tried to calm the knot of anger and confusion in my stomach.

'To be fair. You weren't in the best of states to be asked things.' Fenn explained shortly, flicking through the pages of the medical book. Sat on the opposite end of the bed, she was depressing the mattress and I had to stop myself sliding in her direction.

'You could have tried! How long have I been like this?'

Nobody spoke for a moment.

'Four days.' Jane sighed, 'Can I just say that it was Fenn's ideas to go into your memories. That was nothing to-'

' _In fact. I should be the one apologising for that.'_ Hauser cut through, dropping the speech into our minds. The Pokémon was pacing the room behind Jane, his arms clasped behind his back as if in thought. He looked tired. Then again, that could have been the wrinkles around his eyes. It was easy to forget just how old the Lucario was.

' _Yes. It was rude for me to intrude upon your memories in that way.'_

The Lucario bowed his head. Although I tried, it was hard to stay angry at Hauser. Nor could I keep the cold disappointment bubbling away that I had towards Jane and Fenn. Getting frustrated wouldn't solve anything and with a grumble, I wiped at my face and blinked the tiredness from my eyes with a sigh.

'It's fine guys. Preferably, lets not do it again.' I paused, 'So memories right? I'm guessing this is what it's all about?'

Jane went to object, though after a moment of indecision she just nodded - along with Fenn and Hauser. All three were looking at me expectantly. The sudden attention left my ears warm.

'What!?' I asked at last, unclear on what they wanted me to say exactly.

Nobody spoke for a while. That was, until Fenn wiggled on the other end of the bed, sat her tea down, and turned to me. 'Your features. They're not from the virus outbreak are they? You were part-Umbreon before all this happened?'

The teenager sat with her hands on her scruffy jeans, feigning a more calm manner than her eyes revealed. Fenn's questions were exactly demanding, but there were somewhat intrusive. Then again, supposedly both her and Hauser had been on a whistle-stop tour of my memories. What difference would it make now?

Still. It was difficult to talk about it.

'Yes. I was.'

'And…?' Fenn promoted after I'd remained quiet for a few seconds too long. 'How did it happen? People aren't naturally born like this.'

Outside a couple of Starly and a few pidgeys were calling in complete juxtaposition to the swirling discord in the room.

'I..' My tongue felt heavy, my mouth too dry to make the words. Not wanting to meet anyone's eyes, I simply stared at the floor. If I wasn't sitting down, my tail would have been stuck between my legs. It was all I could do to stop myself whimpering.

'I was engineered to be like this. Someone made me like this.'

'Was that Melissa?' Fenn didn't miss a beat. She bent down to pick up her tea again, cradling it on her lap.

Just hearing my old master's name brought a way of anxiety through my body. My instincts seemed to kick in automatically, ears pulling down against my head as a low tumble came to my throat. The hair on my neck rose as I tried to force away the natural jolt from my sympathetic nervous system. Seeing Jane's eyes widen brought me back to reality as I felt Fenn's hand touch my shoulder. She had moved closer and watched me curiously as I tried to punctuate the denial of what was happening. What more was there to hide?

I managed a small grunt of agreement.

'Yeah. I guess you really did see my past.' Sniffing to clear away a clump of snot, I wiggled feeling back into my jaw. 'She was the one who made me. Her husband died and she...she couldn't get over it. She thought she could bring him back. That's why I was born. But…'

I trailed off. Half of me wanted to spill everything to the three of them, unveiling all my secrets bare and being done with it. But something else fought to hold onto the secrets and scars that had remained hidden for so long.

'How does that even work?' Jane asked me softly, wringing her hands. 'You can't just bring people back from the dead.'

I didn't know how to reply to that. Thankfully Hauser stepped in, both figuratively and literally. The greying Lucario stopped his pacing and, with a sigh, came over to lean against the chest of draws. He played with the bandage around his paw as he spoke into our minds.

' _It's a common myth amongst Pokémon. The Gods exist in a metaphorical Hall of Origin which separates the land of the living from the land of the dead. They control the balance of the universe, creation and destruction.'_

'And it was thought I could pass through the hall and bring back her husband.' I finished, heaving out a breath that seemed bundled up in my chest. Itching at my temples, I was surprised at just how fast my heart was beating.

'You can bring back the dead?' Fenn asked flatly, giving me a stare of disbelief. It wasn't an expression I was used to seeing on the girl and I failed to hold back a sheepish grin.

'Theoretically.'

There was a long pause.

' _Only by passing into the Hall of Origin...and if the Gods let you. Which they won't.'_ Hauser clarified.

'Wait a minute...' Jane flicked her attention between me and the former Vetra member. 'You're telling me that not only do the Legendaries exists, but they live in some supposed hall which you can visit? Seriously?'

I just nodded, fighting back another shiver. My ears bobbed.

'That's ridiculous' The medic stated in a bland tone. Taking a sip from her tea, all Jane could do was shake her head. Turning to look at Fenn, the two teenager made some sort of weird eye contact that might have meant a million different things. 'You were there.' She told Fenn, searching for some form of confirmation to sustain her worries.

After a moment the medic just sighed, 'Let's get back to the matter at hand...and not insane hypotheticals.'

'I thought you said you were brought up in Sinnoh?' Fenn continued to question, 'But we saw memories of you living with a family here in Kanto. Those memories of...of before. How much was true?' Fenn's expression was one of desperation. Not that she broke eye contact. Her pale blue eyes appeared to watch every inch of my face for a response.

I chewed on a lip,

'They were memories right? It happened.' She emphasized slowly.

' _What we saw were two sets of memories, Orion.'_ Hauser added _, 'I have never seen anything like this before. If what Jane has suggested is true about you having some form of dissociative behaviour...that could mean that some of those things did not happen like you remembered.'_

Hauser's voice was kind, but there was a deep pity hanging around the wrinkles near his eyes. For a moment he turned his gaze to look out of the window again, though I refrained from staring at the Pokémon least he would make eye contact. It was starting to get very awkward being the centre of attention. Sweat had begun to bead on my back.

'That happened.' I admitted, studying the floorboards, 'Before all of this. I was a trial for a new medical enhancement that could make Pokémon stronger. Maybe I was being trained to battle the Gods...I don't know…'

My throat was dry.

'I don't really want to remember.'

'But the virus was made for you Orion!' Fenn burst out, 'This explains everything. And if you were...that means…'

Fenn was thinking out loud now. Hopping up onto her feet, I stole a glance upwards to find the girl pacing to the door and back. She had her arms crossed over her chest, holding her jumper tight to her body. It was then that Fenn stopped suddenly, the floorboards groaning under her feet from the sudden acceleration.

'This virus affects you differently. So Matt and K...' Fenn seemed to slip up on the last name. However, Jane was already on the same wavelength. Having sprawling back in her chair, the medic scratched at nose briefly,

'He's going to respond differently.' Jane agreed. 'Matt already seems to have many more features that Orion has. Did you say you were _engineered_?'

I nodded stiffly, a little bemused at the reactions of the two girls. Fenn seemed to have got a burst of energy, dancing on her feet as she acted out her thoughts almost through the rhythm of her footsteps pacing. Blood was starting to warm my ears but I shivered again, feeling the cold in the room more than usual.

' _Engineered_?' Jane repeated, 'So you were always like this...how is that even possible?'

'It shouldn't be.' I mumbled, Jane leant forward in her chair as an obvious invitation for me to speak up. Rubbing at my nose, I tried to steady my voice. 'I really should not be alive considering the ten per…'

'How old are you Orion?' Fenn interrupted suddenly.

My ears perked up at her voice, though Jane shot her friend a cold stare.

'Sorry.' Fenn tugged at her woolen sweatshirt, 'But it might be important. You told us you were eighteen or something right?'

'I'm...I'm not really sure. I think so.'

' _But you couldn't have been much older than that from what we saw in your memories.'_ Hauser added, a hint of interest underlying his voice. ' _And we saw you were much younger in the later memories...at one point you weren't far into your teenage years.'_

Fenn was nodding as she stuck her hands into her pockets, kicking at the floorboards.

'So that stuff with you in the compound happened? And you escaped?' The second in command asked.

'The virus got out.' I explained stiffly, 'That's how...how I escaped. Mel...Melissa created the medication that they tested on me. It wasn't made for….' I trailed off. For years I'd simply refused to acknowledge the repercussions of what my past really represented. I'd been in denial over the truth of the situation for so long that I'd become desensitised to it. The virus might have devastated the world, but it was also a medical enhancement devised to make a weapon stronger than any Pokémon in existence.

I didn't really know for how long I'd been sat in a stupour. It was only when Fenn deposited herself on the bed next to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulder that things started to come back together. Blinking away the tears, I wiped at my snout and tried to perk up my ears a little bit.

'Orion? We can understand if this is becoming a bit too much but you need to tell us everything you can.'

'...Thanks.'

Although they'd been through my memories, it was becoming apparent that they hadn't seen the whole truth. Perhaps it got to the point that those recollections no longer existed following my feeble attempt to simply forget the trauma. It was difficult enough to remember everything that happened during my childhood, let alone the implications of what it truly meant.

'I wasn't lying when I said I look like this because of the virus. It was an enhancement for Pokémon traits, although I guess they'd already designed me to look like this. But I think that Pokémon and people can't deal with what the virus does to them. It's like…' I trailed off, trying to frame my words correctly. Both Jane and Fenn were hanging off every intonation.

'It's like it forces Pokémon to evolve. You know, giving them energy like a Moon Stone would. Except things can't handle that type of force and it either kills you or...turns Pokémon into Ferals.'

Jane pushed her black fringe out of the way before pulling at the collar of her purple fleece. Rubbing at her chin in thought, the medic went to speak only to be interrupted by Fenn. The fact that they both asked the same thing defused the situation rather abruptly.

'So why would that affect adults and not hurt kids in the same way?'

All I could do was shrug. Thankfully Hauser broadcasted the solution in his gruff tone, dropping the thoughts into our ears without any true sound.

' _I believe it has something to do with your bodies. You are not immune as such...but that is no longer an issue given that we know the disease is no longer airborne. Perhaps younger bodies can deal with the mutations in a way like Matt's and possibly Megan's have. They are both adolescents and are perhaps still developing…'_

Fenn nodded, having watched the aging Lucario speak. It was a little unnerving to be in a conversation with the steel-type, given that he muzzle didn't even twitch as used his aura abilities.

'That would make sense. This is something we need to start considering.'

'Interpreting the virus you mean?' Jane queried, 'I think it's more important we keep an eye on what it does first. Whether or not it was a device created for you Orion, we've got Megan to watch given that her infection seems to be getting worse.'

'Megan?' I wondered out loud. 'The sentry in the Feral attack? The one you haven't been letting me see, let alone talk to?' I shot Fenn a dark look, not needing to fire-up the anger sizzling away at the base of my stomach. 'You do know that I'm not infectious, right?'

'We didn't want you bothering her. You know what you're like. She's skittish at the best of times.'

'There seems to be a distinct lack of trust around me.' I grumbled loudly, trying to make light of a rapidly dawning realisation. 'It's about what I am isn't it? I'm basically an Umbreon and be-'

'It's not like that at all! And you know it.' Fenn cut through, trying to speak gently. Even I could her the defensiveness in her tone.

'Huh. _Great_.'

I wasn't convinced. The paranoia had been there since Derrick has flatly rejected to join the survivors in building Fort Haste. But thinking back, it had always been there. Ever since I was old enough to see the look of pity in Jenny's eyes, or the sympathy from my adopted family. I had always been different. What more proof did I need? Fenn had gone as far to look through my memories rather than ask me directly.

'Come on Orion.' Fenn started to scold, 'You were the one that didn't want to talk about any of this.'

It wasn't anger in her blue eyes but an all too familiar mix of frustration and dejection.

'Now you've seen it all, how can you blame me?' I replied flatly. 'Besides, would you have believed all of this?'

'I w…Heck!'

We all jumped when the door suddenly opened. The squeak of the hinges took us all by surprise, even Hauser given his aura senses should have picked up any intruders. Ever so slowly the door creaked open. Fenn was on her feet just as Kim stepped inside, averting her gaze in a poor attempt at guilt. My face dropped. The visiting tomboy was the last person I expected.

Smirking, the girl adjusted her tartan beret and went as far to give us all a short bow. I was beyond confused.

'You could have knocked.' Fenn chewed on the words. There was indignation in her eyes that Kim seemed completely unaware of.

Closing the door behind her, the teenager wiped at a few specks of moisture on her black jacket.

'I think you were all a bit _too_ preoccupied to notice.'

' **Manners** Kim.' Jane added smoothly, looking down over the tops of her glasses, 'What can we help with?'

There was a long pause during which Kim seemed to study everyone in turn. There was a prolonged, somewhat awkward moment during which Kim and Fenn seemed to be having some form of mental stare-off. Knowing what the tomboy was capable of off, I wasn't sure whether to step in or not.

'I wanted to talk to Orion actually, if you can spare a sec?' The last was directed towards me. It didn't take much to assume that Kim had been stood outside the door for some time listening in. However, following on from the grilling from Jane and Fenn, any opportunity for an escape would do. Nodding slowly, I wasn't prepared for Fenn to butt in. She'd already bounced onto her feet, and had her arms firmly crossed.

'We're busy.'

'I think she was talking to me.' I interrupted sourly. Fenn gave me a dirty look which seemed to amuse Kim slightly, 'I am allowed outside again aren't I?'

Standing up anyways, I brushed myself off and went on a hunt to find my boots. Neither Fenn nor Jane tried to help as I found them tucked away neatly under my bed. Ignoring the chamber pot also pushed back into the shadows, I slipped my feet into my shoes and straightened.

Taking a glance out of the window failed to elucidate what time of day it was. Late afternoon maybe?

The last few days had been a bit of a blur.

Kim offered me a rough smile, already heading out of the door. Tugging my jacket around me a bit more tightly than usual, I spared a glance between the three of them.

'I…'

'It's fine.' Fenn waved me off in defeat,refusing to make eye contact, 'Get some air.'

'Thankyou.' I tried to sound as sincere as I could.

My gut told me this wouldn't be the end of our conversation. Although I hid the truth for as long as I could, my past was starting to float to the surface. Knowing Fenn, now she'd got a line of inquiry there was no telling what she would do. It was only a matter of time.

'Also.' Fenn added, running a hand through her golden hair, 'The Wildlings are coming tomorrow. Talk later alright?'

I sniffed, but decided it was best not to answer that right now.

Pulling the door closed, I turned to find Kim had already traipsed downstairs and was waiting at the door impatiently. She even went as far to tap her foot on the floor. Pulling my collar up, I could only try and fight away yet another cold shiver - and I wasn't even outside yet! Impatiently, she yanked open the large farmhouse door which had been painted a horrendous shade of cream, and hopped outside.

I finally caught up with her after slamming the garden gate behind me and hot footing a few paces to match her stride.

'What's the hurry?' I asked, burying my hands into my pockets.

'What do you think?' Kim's breath steamed in the cold air, 'How could anyone not notice what that _bitch_ thinks of me? Yeah. I get it. I can read minds and all... but it is so. Damn. Obvious.'

Kim bit off each word before slowing down a little. She'd been heading down towards the yard and was starting to realize we weren't exactly alone. Some of the kids were busy working on erecting scaffolding up the side of an old cattle shed. The steel framework hugged the wooden boards like some strange exoskeleton.

'I'm guessing this is Fenn you're on about?'

' **Jane**.' Kim pretty much spat the name out, 'She's quiet but boy does she house some dark thoughts. Fenn's better now...now she knows.'

'Ah.' I nodded slowly. Kim seemed embarrassed to admit the fact, reddening slightly. Giving me a glance as she slowed her pace slightly, her face contorted into an expression of confusion. She eyes me sullenly, 'Why are you giving me that look.'

'It's good...letting them know I mean.' In truth I was thinking back to Fenn and Kim's mental face-off only a few minutes earlier. Maybe the were communicating somehow?

'Speak for yourself. If that conversation was anything to go by, then you have some dark secrets of your own. Besides. Fenn's not too bad…' Kim trailed off as if become aware of what she was saying. 'You know. For Fenn.'

I grunted, for the first time starting to understand what she meant. Fenn was practically the project manager who ran Fort Haste. She had a habit of getting what she wanted. Not even my memories were safe it seemed. Then again, I had a certain Lucario to talk to about that. Maybe I'd learn about the distinction between voluntarily leaving and being kicked-out of Vetra.

'Why don't we wander along the palisade? It's our best bet for getting some privacy.'

Kim stopped, sighing heavily before turning to face me. For a moment the tomboy just eyed me curiously, her irises a strange faded grey colour. The tartan beret on her head was poofed up slightly more than what you might have expected - maybe due to the lavender Espeon ears hidden underneath. The hat was slightly out of place with the black steel toe-capped boots and the thick leather jacket she lived in. Then again. Pink wasn't really her colour either.

'So they went inside your mind right?' Kim asked. I waved her in the direction of the palisade and only answered once we had a few more metres between us and the kids beavering away. Some were starting to stare and so I waved a short greeting, hoping it had more to do with my sudden reappearance. I didn't know how many days I'd been out of it - but any time was too long.

My companion didn't like being ignored, so she phrased the question in a slightly different manner,

'They went inside your mind and now you have to deal with their snooping?'

All I could do was nod,

'Pretty much. I guess you've known for a while…'

'Humph. You're a dark type and that's why I like you Orion. You're the only person I can hold a conversation with now...at least without being able to hear what you say before you say it. It's Fenn you can thank.'

I itched at my hair, 'And there I was thinking we were friends.'

'As if!' Kim rolled her shoulders, 'I barely even know you.'

I grunted in agreement. Kim was the only other survivor we knew of outside of Fort Haste as of yet. She'd set up shop in the city we'd left behind, happy to live in isolation in the ruins of society. At first I thought Kim was a little crazy for actively choosing to live alone. It was only during our second chance meeting that the girl had revealed her infection. It was a week later that she grew the courage to discuss it more openly. Learning to be a psychic Pokémon couldn't have been the easiest thing in the world. Especially a pretty pink Espeon for perhaps the most goth person I knew.

The sentries were doing their rounds along the embankment. After a short chat to one, Kim and I worked our way around the loop of Fort Haste. Catching conversation between each post was slightly frustrating, but worked wonders of stretching my legs. Fresh air and exercise was making me feel like my normal self again.

I didn't want to think about how long I'd been cooped up in that room.

'So…' Kim held onto the word for a while, trying to prompt some form of conversation.

'You were the one that wanted to talk to me.' I pointed out slowly, casting my eyes across the farmland surrounding us. Winter must have arrived in the past few days. Nearly all the trees had shed their leaves.

'I thought I was saving you.' Kim admitted wryly, 'Fenn wasn't too pleased. But yeah. It's about staying here actually…'

'Great! Uh...should be fine. Then again. I don't know what say I have any more.'

Kim snorted,

'They were worried about you Orion. It's not like they were planning a mutiny or anything.'

All I could do was grumble. It was hard to distinguish between what was in my own head and what wasn't some times. That had always been the problem. Now I just had to focus on staying grounded and not losing control again - even if I was pretty sure that some certain _sleeping pills_ were the true concern. Perhaps this was why Jane barred me from her medical supply cabinet.

'Trust me. You're still the figurehead here.' Kim said after we passed another sentry. The child had been so busy staring out across the agricultural land that she'd almost walked into the two of us.

'I'm guessing you've read that in their minds of something?'

'Yeah summin' like that.' Kim grumbled, 'No. Honestly. Although nobody wants to admit it, they all think you've got balls. And even I have to agree with that. You might not be the one doing it, but you've got some wacky ideas that means you've survived thus far. You've even got respect from a member of Vetra. Now that's something.'

I was a little surprised that Kim believed the Vetra was anything more than a bedtime story.

We shuffled past another sentry. Craning my neck, I could see that the K'field was empty of anyone practicing. This time of day Jeff often ran archery sessions. However, the days were drawing in and the evenings were getting earlier. I could feel the night drawing closer as much as see the sky darkening. I wondered if Kim had similar instincts. Espeons were naturally creatures of the day. Did hybrids like us even count?

'I heard you finished the electrics. Thanks for that by the way.' I shot Kim a warm look. She was too busy studying the structure of the Keep to notice.

'Not a problem.' She mumbled,

'Did Mike help out?'

'He did most of it. All I had to supply was a transformer and play around with a computer for the panels. That should all work now. We'll just have to isolate the old mains cables and then create a mini-grid for Fort Haste. Shouldn't take long. Well. All Mike wants to do now is set up a sound system.'

I stopped suddenly. So suddenly, in fact, that I almost slipped over entirely.

'Do it!' I could barely contain my excitement.

'Wa..What?' Kim skidded to a stop too. 'You can't be serious. Well...yeah. Maybe you can. Actually I found something that fitted the specifications for your last music-related demand.'

'It was a request Kim.'

'Huh. I didn't hear a please nor a thank you. Anyways, don't go thanking me yet. It might not be what you were expecting...' Kim started walking again. I caught her up, wiggling my fingers in my pockets to try and keep the blood flowing. A chilly wind was catching at my ears and tail, making them tingle slightly in the cold. If Kim had any form of Espeon tail, she was keeping it well hidden under some baggy jeans.

I was almost tempted to ask her about it. Before I could muster up the courage, she was chatting again.

'So the defences?' Kim waved a hand to our right and across the Lee slopes, 'I've heard Mike talk about them a lot. What's the specs?'

I shrugged, 'It is what you see. Sixty feet of razor and barbed wire, stakes, stuff like that. A four foot ditch and then a six foot embankment. Eight foot palisade...and a tad under two hundred Hasties to deal with anything that gets through.'

'Your idea?' Kim asked, adjusting her beret very carefully.

I nodded.

'And you're paranoid that they don't like you. Sheesh. You're like a roman or summin'. You know? There are no obstacles because we'll just build a bridge over it or tunnel through it. For the enemy it would have been as scary of shite. Like fighting God or something.'

'Yeah.' I smirked, 'The Ferals really tremble.'

Kim didn't know how close she was getting to the truth.

'You know what I mean. And then that.' Kim pointed at the K'field we were approaching, nearly taking out the next sentry as she did so. The boy gave her a dark look, though I apologised for her.

'That's the K'field.' I explained, 'It was a trade-off between defences and having a sports field.'

'Not such a good idea.' Kim chewed on a lip, as if trying to come up with something witty to say.

'You sound like Mike.' I muttered. I didn't expect the teenager to hear me. Kim just sniffed, 'He's not my type. Anyways, he's already taken. You know about Haley right? They're practically a married couple.'

'That wasn't exactly what I meant.' I explained slowly, waving a greeting to another sentry before continuing on by. This one, a kid named Charlie from what I could remember, actually asked where I'd been. Recalling Fenn's rushed explanation for my absence, I described my imaginary fever. It wasn't like it was far from the truth.

'It was more…' I trailed off, trying to recover my train of thought.

'I'm kidding you Orion.' Kim shot me a toothy grin, 'It's just nice being able to talk properly. I haven't spoken this much in fookin' weeks. It's brilliant.' She grinned cheekily.

There were a few moments of silence as we followed the embankment down onto the K'field. Here the trench petered out and the defences which before had been razor wire and stakes became wire gabions. Passing the last sentry point, we wrapped around the back of the Foodhall and stopped for a moment. With Fort Haste behind and the endless countryside stretched out ahead, it was easy to forget our situation. Even though it was chilly, the late autumn day was somehow beautiful, if a little overcast. Letting the fresh air fill my lungs was like a drug.

It wasn't quite the same for Kim. She was looking around nervously, paranoid almost.

'You can still hear them, can't you?' I asked after a few moments of heavy breathing. The tomboy kicked at the dirt with a shoe. After a small shrug, she adjusted her hat and sighed heavily,

'I knew the apocalypse was supposed to be bad but _fook_...Who decided to mutate us into Pokémon? I need to learn to block it out - and sooner rather than later. You think Hauser can help?' Although on the surface Kim seemed her normal self, there was a hint of desperation underlying the last sentence.

I grunted, 'I guess so. He'll have more experience than anyone else. I mean if he can rummage inside my head, I'm pretty sure he can fix some mind reading.' Pausing for a moment, it was slowly becoming clear just what impact this was having on Kim's life. Imaging being able to hear chattering constantly with no way to block it out. Being able to hear others thoughts? Just considering it made me shiver, and my opinion of Kim shifted. She was a loner, but perhaps it wasn't through choice.

'Where are you sleeping at the moment?' I asked after a few moments, feeling the sharp breeze tickle my ears.

'In my Ute at the moment. I've got it parked round in the lead-to up the rickyard.'

'Behind the foodhall?' I had to query, not familiar with her terminology. 'That's your red truck right?'

Kim just nodded, sighing again.

'You know. You're welcome to have a room in the Farmhouse? Might be a little more comfortable.'

'Humph. I'll think about it.' Kim murmured, her attention elsewhere. 'Not near Matt though. I've sampled his trauma and don't really want to go through it again. Poor chap. Lucky to be here, let alone alive.'

There were a few long moments of silence. It wasn't really awkward, more of a mutual agreement. Even my sensitive ears could pick out the activity of camp behind. The sounds of the FoodHall and the activities going on the Far-shed. The old underlying scents of manure still clung to the farm, but superposed over it was the comforting smells of civilisation. I clung to the warm feeling in my stomach that I was somehow safe here. Maybe Kim felt the same?

'This losing your mind thing...it's only you right?' Kim spoke her mind at last, 'I'm not going to go all-' She lifted her hands and waved them in the air briefly, 'You know? Can't be fooked with that weird stuff you did.'

I feigned a hurt expression. 'You think I'd do that on purpose?'

'You're strange Orion. I'll give you that. Just interested in what's going to come of...of all this.'

'Stick around and find out.' I rumbled, scratching at an itch on my tail. Wagging the furred appendage returned some feeling in my tail, the golden ring brightening naturally. Kim stared at the action, eyes widening, before sniffing, turning to look away. I didn't need telepathic powers to know what she was thinking. Redding a little, I pulled my hands away and buried them in my pockets, pulling my elbows in automatically as a way to store heat.

'Should be coming up to dinner time anyways.' I nodded to camp behind us, 'Wanna get some food?'

'I'll pass, maybe later.' It took Kim a long time to reply. It was hard to tell if there were tears in her eyes, or if it was just the cold air stinging her cheeks. The stocky girl had her chin up however, standing tall in her leather jacket pulled tightly over a number of woolly cardigans. Chewing on her lip, she breathed out a large sigh and shuffled round to study Fort Haste.

'I think it's going to be a while before I can deal with that much noise.'

I glanced at the teenager out of the corner of my eye.

'We'll sort something out.'

'Yeah. You do that. I'm gonna get something from my truck.' Kim chuckled, 'And I'll see what we can do about some more electricity into this hole. Been craving just flopping down and watching a movie or three. Heck, I'm sure that no one would want to see that travesty of theatre performed the other day again. Why don't we raid a HMV or summin' and get a Bond film? You only live twice and all that.'

She didn't notice the irony in that comment. I let it slip by.

'Sounds like a plan.' I replied after my moments compilation. Tugging at my shirt collar, I perked up my ears and tried to identify tell-tale signs of an approaching mealtime. Kim chuckled at the expression and I let my ears droop, not noticing my tail wagging.

'Anyways. I better show my face. Put everyone's mind at ease.'

Kim nodded absently, before suddenly become aware of the situation.

'Uh...I was going to ask you something.' I nodded, motioning her to continue, 'It's about…'

She stopped suddenly. Once again that oddly nervous, somewhat jumpy look was back. It didn't really fit the girl who was normally so boisterous.

'Never mind.'

'You sure?' I raised an eyebrow but Kim. She hesitated, but eventually waved me away, 'Ok then. I'll have a chat with Hauser and see what we can do.'

'Huh! For the past few days you've been pretty much foaming at the mouth. Why don't you do sort yourself out first? And for fook's sake have a shower. I can smell you from here.' Kim retorted

She wrinkled her nose for dramatic effect before breaking into a weary smile. I flashed a warm smile, resisted the urge to clap her on the shoulder, and headed back into camp. Kim watched me go.

Taking a whiff at my armpit put things into perspective. I had to recoil from the stench, struggling to remember the last time I had a shower. That empty hole in chest had returned and I drew in a deep breath. I couldn't afford to lose control again. For now, that meant keeping myself busy so that I didn't have the chance. Perhaps it was a logical solution to give me sleeping pills after all.

Mooching across the yard, I was mostly lost in thought until a loud whoop caught me attention.

'HA! Proof!' Jeff yelled in his loud voice before being matched by a rather disgruntled reply from Mike. The teenager was in the motion of setting up a number of improvised bowling pins at the far end of the yard. Half of them were tin cans that looked suspiciously stolen from the kitchen storeroom.

'Just because you can do it once doesn't mean you're better.'

'Well! I didn't see you do it on your first try!' The Squadron leader hollered, deftly throwing a roll of duct tape between each hand. Mike shook his head for a moment before catching me approaching. Dipping his head in welcome, he straightened and brushed the moisture off his trousers.

'Alright?' The teenager waved me over, 'Maybe you can ref this net shot.'

I lifted an eyebrow,

'It's skittles. Jeff thinks he's better than me and got a lucky shot first try. We're fairly limited because we've only got a roll of tape and ten minutes break to sort this thing out.'

'And the issue is…?' I waved at Jeff who was waiting impatiently down the other end of the yard.

'We need a bowling alley of some kind.' I didn't realise the ginger-haired kid was joking before he broke out into a grin, 'Teasing you. No Jeff seemed to be in a bad mood so I challenged him. The problem is that he ain't bad.' Mike paused for a moment, studying me with tired eyes, 'How about yourself? Fenn didn't kill you off?'

Mike smirked again and I couldn't help but grin. The teenager had a bad habit of making light of often difficult situations. He could be a bit of a Psyduck sometimes; appearing calm and collected on the surface whilst paddling madly underneath. At the moment he seemed much like his normal self, albeit a little peeved that the younger kid was beating him.

'Wanna have a go?' Mike offered but I had to decline,

'I was going to catch I shower. Kim says I stink.'

Mike went as far to wrinkle his nose,

'Not going to lie, but have to agree with her there.' He ruffled his curly hair, 'It's been nice having her around you know. A little weird but she knows her shite. We've got a electricity down an extension lead running through to the food hall. Was thinking we'd set up a projector and watch a movie.' Mike took a moment to lob another roll of roll of tape in Jeff's direction.

'Kim had the same idea. I heard the younger kids set up a play the other day. Was it really that bad?' I mentioned, running a hand through my hair.

Mike grimaced slightly before shrugging,

'I don't think anyone is gonna live that one down...hence the movie. Was going to play the first Vetra trilogy film. Seems like a safe bet as it's mostly about Pokémon. It might help avoid reminding kids of what they've lost.'

'Sounds like a plan.' I nodded, 'I wonder what Hauser will think.'

'Depends on his opinion of the Lucario character. I doubt Pinewood was very accurate.'

The two of us were interrupted by Jeff yelling to move out of the way. He'd was already performing a ludicrous stretching routine as he got ready to hit a row of cans nearly twenty feet away. Mike shot me a glance, shook his head again, and then took a few steps away from the improvised bowling pins.

'I'll leave you to it.'

'Sure. If he hits them again it'll be a miracle.'

I laughed out loud, watched Jeff miss the cans by a couple of metres, before heading off to the shower block. In the background I could hear Jeff cursing and Mike yelling out rough insults in return. It was clear that the competition was going to be going on some time before the two could agree. It was going to be a long ten minute break.

Taking a cold shower within the improvised stalls, I patted myself down with a soft towel and dressed again in my old clothes. Hindsight was a wonderful thing as I sniffed at my shirt. I could only pray that nobody has as sensitive a nose as I did. Leaving the towel hung up to drip-dry, I shook my damp tail off and made my way towards the kitchens. It was clear I had misjudged what the time was because there was no flurry of activity inside. Instead, it was just Insley sat at a table furiously skimming through a small paperback

'Oh.' She only noticed I'd arrived when I sat down opposite, 'You're alive then.'

'Good to see you too.' I mumbled, peeking over to see what she was reading. 'I'm guessing that it's not dinner time yet.

Insley looked up from her reading.

'It's three o-clock Orion.' She smirked, 'Guess you're still not a hundred percent then? Has Fenn apologised for nearly killing you yet?'

I huffed, 'Mike asked basically the same thing. What you reading?'

'This?' Insley lifted the book up to show me the cover. It took me a long time to read the bold yellow text. So long in fact that after watching me intently for a few seconds, Insley had to read the title herself. 'It's The Martian by Andy Weir. It's basically the key to all our problems - a martian diet!'

I just stared at the stocky girl. Maybe I wasn't the only one going mad.

'Potatoes and vitamin tablets. You mentioned that we had a secret food crises. I went through everything and did a calorie count. Basically we have enough energy to last us all until the start of April without significant rationing. We've got enough stuff, just no variety. So towards the end it might literally be pasta, potatoes, and vitamins.'

Insley seemed brighter than she usually did, even going as far to flash an easy-going smile. Earmarking her page, she set the book down and lent back on her chair. For a moment the teenager combed through her long brown hair with her fingers.

'We're all going to moan about it...but it's good knowing we'll be alive to do it. Hell of a lot better than having to survive on Mars.'

'I'm sorry about scaring you all with that.' I sighed, itching at my wet tail.

'Yeah let's not go through all that again. It's been a strange few days.' She admitted softly, leaning back to stare at the corrugating roofing of the FoodHall. 'You know, I didn't think you did all that much around camp. But you don't notice things until their gone. Everyone's been acting a bit weird. Not to mention we've got the Pokémon lot arriving tomorrow and have absolutely nothing ready.'

After rubbing at her eyes with a hand, Insley fixed me for the first time with her deep brown eyes,

'That'll give you a job to do. Fenn said something about putting them in the woodshed at the back. Wouldn't take much to kit that out. Waddya think?'

I nodded, not sure how to respond. It was unusual to see the teenager is such a cheerful mood. Sliding the book under an arm, Insley kicked her chair backwards and pulled herself to her feet.

'You haven't missed out on much. Haley's moved in with Mike, so they're basically a married couple up in the old workshop. It's pretty much a small flat now. Bass still hasn't realised that Matt has a thing for her. Otherwise not much else interesting has happened. Oh. James burnt himself yesterday and Jane refused to treat him because he wouldn't stop cursing. Haven't seen him since.'

The teenager chuckled to herself for a moment as if recalling the event. I tried to hide my red face with an ear-scratch, not sure how to respond to the rapid onslaught of gossip.

Insley kicked her chair under the table.

'So. No more spells like that again right?' Her tone turned serious and I returned her concerned look. 'You scared us all a little bit. We weren't sure if it was virus or...whatever. You being all Umbreony was kinda freaky, if a little cute.'

I reddened a little but Insley had already turned and was heading back towards the ovens. There was even a small spring in her step. Perhaps it was her good mood that let Insley's guard slip a little bit. She made a habit of acting bigger than she needed to, though that was helped by her wide frame and stocky build. Only now and then did the caring nature she had hidden inside shine through. Insley was considerate at heart, she just smothered her generosity underneath a cold hardworking nature.

The comforting smells of the FoodHall and the cold shower had perked me up a little bit. Taking a few long breaths, I sat back in my chair and gazed around the empty tables. This was all that was left, everyone who had survived the virus and possibly the last of humanity. Whether I liked it or not, I had been instrumental in that. Even if indirectly, the fact that I existed had turned the world into an apocalyptic nightmare. This wasn't saving humanity - this was damage control.

Admitting that I was the one to blame wasn't easy. Inside there was still a bubble of denial against everything that had happened. What difference would it make if I couldn't even control my instincts now? If I could only keep it together.

The legendaires were supposed to bring balance to the world...and here we were living in the ruins of their destruction. It was always supposed to be their purpose to bring peace and stability, though I now doubted that fact. You couldn't fight change, only accept it. I had to embrace what both what I and now the world had become. But how could I explain that to Fenn?

Shaking my head to clear such thoughts, I pulled myself to my feet. Having been trapped in my room for so long, my feet were itching to move. I wandered outside without too much consideration where. Mike and Jeff were still in their heated game of skittles, albeit with Mike in the lead now. Both of them were too occupied to chat, so I left them to it. Pulling my coat around me tighter did little to fight off the brisk breeze. It was the cold more than anything else that took me back inside.

Many of the old sheds once held Bouffalant, tauros, or something similar, with the thick breezeblock walls up to around six foot followed by wooden boards. The steel structures had been pretty easy to convert with plyboard and long wooden beams. Many had been split up into small dorms housing four to six beds, all joined by corridors running the length of the barns. One shed had been left empty, and the remaining building split into a couple of larger spaces to use for activities.

For now it was the latter I headed towards, hoping to bump into anyone to have a catch up. Apart from Fenn that was. I still felt somewhat violated from her intrusion into my memories. It did make it easier to admit that I had a lot more involvement in this epidemic than they may have imagined. But still. I was often paranoid at the best of times.

Closing the thick oak door behind me, I felt the warmth of the barn seep into my clothing. Perking my ears up and I could hear activities going on inside both rooms either side of the hallway. Light seeped under the dusty gap between the concrete and the MDF walls.

I brushed the wrinkles out of my damp shirt before picking a door at random.

I knocked once, waiting for a moment, and then pushing the door open. The whole wall shook a little seems it was a mere partition ran down the length of the barn. A flush of heat and noise greeted me as I stepped through to find Bass leading a group of seven or eight kids. The short girl was holding a large scrap of leather in front of her, somehow managing to perform example stitches at the same time through the fabric.

The sound of the makeshift door closing broke the silence of the lesson and for a brief moment everyone turned around to stare. I awkwardly waved. Seeing that it was just me, the older kids returned back to what appeared to be a rather engaging activity. Bass had a captivating voice as she explained the sewing process step by step. I hung back, watching with interest for a few moments before turning my attention to the other side of the room. Here three kids, two girls and a teenage boy, were sat in an arc in front of Matt. He was in the process of whittling away a short branch with the small group. The morph's tufty ears bobbed as he concentrated on the technique.

'Since when could you use a knife?' I spoke in a hushed tone so as not to interrupt Bass. Matt took a few more strokes with his knife before grinning. Somewhat posthumously, he forced his smile into a mock frown.

'It's green woodcraft. Been doing it since I was a kid. There isn't much to do in Orre to be honest. It's pretty dry and dusty without too many Pokémon. A bit of a better location to survive an apocalypse to be honest.'

'Orre? That's…'

'A pretty distant land right?' Matt chuckled, 'I was brought up in Agate Village, one of the few green places in that desert. I doubt you've heard of it.'

All I could do was shrug. The Leafeon-morph didn't seem to mind.

'Yeah. It's the kind of place where ace trainers go to die. Nice town though. I used to do stuff like this before I started travelling. I'm a bit rusty and these guys are pretty much at my level all ready.' The three kids had their heads down carefully whittling. The boy seemed particularly self-conscious of their work.

'What's this for altogether?' I queried. Matt sheathed a small blade he'd been using before getting to his feet. Whilst stepping out of the circle the older morph gripped his tail tightly. 'I've already been nicked once.' He muttered wryly, before handing over a couple of wooden beads.

'They're toggles. Bass had the idea to use them with the new armor she's been designing. Actually, she's got a prototype over there if you want a look. Thought it might help out if Ferals have more poison-stingers like that one spider did.' Matt explained softly. He appeared to live in his dark brown hoodie which was now flecked with wood shavings. The sleeves reached down to his paw-like hands. The shade of his fur was a near perfect match of the fabric.

The morph saw me staring and wiggled his stubby fingers, 'I'm not as dexterous as I used to be. But this stuff it fine. Anyways, it's good to see you up. Everything good?'

Matt studied me with his emerald eyes and I fought back a grimace,

'Yeah. I had a bad spell. Jane's diagnosed me with some sort of mental disorder thingy…'

'Doesn't sound too great. Well, it's either that or you just work yourself too hard.' The Leafeon-morph agreed, rolling his shoulders. 'I'm guess Fenn explained why she gave you the pills? I didn't know until afterwards.'

'Yeah. We're not sure if they triggered it or not. It doesn't really matter now. We've had a chat.'

'Good!' Matt brightened, 'Anyways I better get back to it. Responsible adult and all.' He chuckled, pocketing the wooden buttons and flashing a short grin. It didn't do much to cover his tired eyes and slightly pale face. However, the kid was cheerful as he sat back down, already helping one of the girl out with a particular knot-ridden length of ash.

I smiled briefly, happy to find Matt was settling in. The boy had initially been struggling to integrate. At least by now he learnt that the kids didn't really gave a damn about his looks.

Bass was still doing her demonstration and I loitered at the back with my hands in my pockets. Small beads of moisture clung to my shirt from previous cold shower. It was around five minutes later that she was able to leave the kids to their work. After a final glance around to check that everyone was able to perform the task at hand, she wandered over in my direction.

'Good to see you're alive Orion.' Bass grinned, clasping her hands behind her back.

'Everyone seems to be telling me that.'

'Well it's true. You basically went full Pokémon for a few days. You even growled at me!' The last was said in a hoarse whisper and I blushed profusely. 'I'm guessing that's not a normal thing to do?'

'No. Well...not normally.'

'There were some sleeping pills involved.' Bass gave me a sideways glance before turning her gaze back to her class. They were a mixed bunch of mostly older teenagers over fourteen years, dressed in a mismatch of clothing which mostly consisted of warm sweatshirts and fleeces. There wasn't much need for fashion anymore. All were busy sewing away at what could only be described as raw leather.

'How's things with you?'

'Me? Eh, you know how it is. End of the world and all that. We get by.' She stuck her hands in her pockets. 'Insley did a stock count and turns out we're not going to die anytime soon.'

'Yeah. Sorry about that. I wasn't thinking straight.'

'Don't sweat it. At least we're aware of it now. I'd rather be worrying about these things then not know about them.'

'That's true.' I agreed, my ears perking up a little at the teenager's optimism, 'And I assume the armor is forward thinking too?'

Bass sighed, 'Yeah. Something like that. If we're being thrust back into the middle-ages then why not look the part? Shame we haven't got a blacksmith. I reckon a few suits of armor would go down a treat.' She giggled and I smiled briefly, trying and failing to imagine the scene.

'Anyways.' I scratched at my tail, 'I'll leave you to it.'

'Doing the rounds are you?'

'Yeah something like that.' I tugged my coat across my shoulders.

Bass smiled warmly, 'Well look after yourself.'

I grinned sheepishly, said farewell to the girl and waved haphazardly towards Matt in the corner. My stomach rumbled loudly after closing the door.

The meal that evening went without a hiccup.

To be fair I was a little surprised at that. The table that once solely belonged to the Chain now had a few extra additions. Jeff had joined us, as well as both Matt and Hauser. The old cafeteria table could no longer fit us all, and so Bass had decided to simply cram in more seats. I could only hope it wasn't a permanent solution - doing my best not to touch elbows with Matt one side and Bass on the other. At this point I was grateful nobody had stolen my old seat. Things had moved around however, because Fenn sat at the opposite end of the table. Hauser was perched beside her, both staring at me awkwardly with scarily similar gazes. Trying not to laugh at the comparison, I puffed out a breath and diligently surveyed the noisy FoodHall.

Having expected the need for a long explanation for my mysterious disappearance, I was surprised when nobody asked. Fenn must have sorted that out for me. It was almost like I had never left.

First cart was as noisy as always, the scent of soup and warm bowls a welcome sight for what had been a rather wintery day. Jeff was talking boisterously over his meal, waving his spoon around as he told the antics of the mornings training. It was during a particular noisy exchange between him and Insley that Matt leaned over towards me.

'Fenn suggested I work with Jeff when the Pokémon come.' The Leafeon murmured, low enough so only our enhanced hearing could listen in.

'You don't seem too happy about that.'

Matt shrugged, leaning back in his chair. Meanwhile, Jeff was loudly declaring how he'd thrashed Mike at skittles. The mechanic wasn't having any of it, but had resorted to shaking his head silently in protest.

'I just don't see how I can help.' The teenager admitted, eating a spoonful of soup. The meal was a strange mix of carrot and ginger that wasn't overly pleasant.

'You're a Pokémon trainer right? You know more about tactics and using types advantages than any of us.'

'Yeah, for stadium battles. Not for fighting off mutant bug Pokémon trying to devour you whole.'

I didn't feel it would be wise to mention that helping Jeff would likely be at the expense of aiding Bass with her lessons. Then again, perhaps that was the main reason that Matt was feeling a little sour. Playing with the soup in my bowl, I struggled to find the right words.

So instead I changed the topic of conversation completely.

'Have you seen that we've got electricity now?' I must have spoken a little too loudly as Bass overheard, seated across the oak table. With the combination of Mike's subdued arguments and the general chatter of the FoodHall, I was surprised she heard it at all.

'Yeah. I helped Mike wire up the sockets in the house and the Foodhall. Lifts us out of the twelve century and into the twenty-first.'

'Oh. Kim's finished that then?' Bass leant over, genuinely curious with out rather more civilised conversation. 'I thought she was joining us for dinner? She was dropping stuff off in the house when I last saw her. Something about a CD player. Guess that makes sense now we've got electricity.'

I shrugged, not wanting to let her secret out of the bag for her. Kim wouldn't appreciate me announcing the fact she was indeed a morph. 'She's busy finishing things off I guess.'

'Knows her stuff about wiring up the panel though.' Matt affirmed, 'She seemed a little jealous of my UV lamp. That things like drinking sunshine.'

'I bet.' Bass snickered.

Dinner never lasted very long. People ate quickly, often having to rush off to do other things. Winter was fast approaching and the FoodHall was notably darker as the plates were returned to the trolleys. Fenn pulled me over to the side just as the kids were leaving and getting ready for their nighttime routine. Since we had limited toileting and showering facilities, this had become a well-timed art. The second-in-command looked tired and she fixed me a long stare.

'I'm sorry about earlier.' I apologised, judging the situation. Fenn smiled briefly before waving off my confession.

'It's ok. It's been a bit much for everyone. No. It was about the Wildlings arriving tomorrow.' For a moment she watched the youngest kids leave the hall, a small group of five or six which weren't even ten years old. After a moment Fenn sighed and leant back on the table. Scraping her feet across the concrete floor, I prepared myself for the worst.

'We're not ready. For the Wildlings I mean.'

Now that was a topic of conversation I wasn't expecting. Fenn must have realised as she shot me a worried look.

'What?'

'Oh nothing. I thought you were going to put them in the Woodshed? Insley mentioned something.'

'Yeah.' She wiped at her nose, 'But that's a tip.'

'They're wild Pokémon. They'll be fine.'

'I guess.' Fenn didn't seem convinced. Above the clattering of carts and plates Insley's voice could be heard organising the clean up in the kitchen. Meanwhile, hot water was already been taken up in large buckets to the shower block. It was a long walk from the FoodHall to the unit behind and mostly involved a fleet of wheelbarrows.

'I've been thinking about what you said earlier...and think it might be a good idea to have both you and Megan involved with settling the Wildlings in. Supposedly she can understand Hauser, so I'm guessing, like you, she'll be able to understand Pokémon too. It'll be a help.'

'If that's fine with you.'

Fenn gave me a dirty look but that quickly dissipated upon seeing my grin. It was clear the teenager was too tired to deal with my dry sense of humour this evening.

'You know…it all kinda makes sense now. With the virus and stuff.'

I didn't know what to say. Thankfully Fenn spotted that. Straightening, she rubbed at her eyes before yawning.

'But if I don't want to talk about that now, you sure as hell don't. Better get to it. Tomorrow's going to be a day and a half.'

All I could do was agree.

The afternoon didn't seem to exist and instead a short evening led into an early dusk. The bird song had changed almost in preparation, Starlys warbling a goodbye song to the day. With no light pollution the stars came out early and dotted the sky with a million specks of illumination. There was no moon however, even as I stood at the top of the newly-christened rickyard with my hands in my pockets. It was nearly an hour later when I headed over to the farmhouse and the relative warmth indoors.

Pricking my ears up suddenly, I had been so lost in thought that I hadn't heard the noise blasting through the cold, brittle air. There was a low rumble shaking through the farmhouse, cut off suddenly by what could only be described as music. I didn't know the instruments being played but the melody was kind of familiar. My Umbreon-ears honed in on the noise, even as I shut the farmhouse door behind me.

A grin crept over my face.

Pulling my coat off and throwing it over the banister, I jogged up the stairs taking two steps at a time. Squeaking across the landing, the music became progressively louder as I approached the meeting room. I winced at the volume of what must have been some sort of string instrument. The bass tones could be felt through my feet as much as through the air itself.

Pushing the door open, I was met with a wall of sound.

'Fenn!' I yelled, ducking inside to find what you're normally expect in the meeting room. Fenn used this space as her office and had a number of bits of paper spread out across the round table, as well as cup of stale cold coffee festering to one side.

What I didn't expect to find was Fenn apparently fighting with a CD player. The girl was stood up, violently shaking the machine up and down. Pausing from her harassment, she then proceeded in an attempt to rip the plastic lid off the compact player like her life depended on it.

'FENN!' I yelled again.

The music stopped. With my ears ringing, I tried to brush down my hair which felt like it was stood on end. Fenn jumped, CD player still in hand, and turned to me darkly. Where before the music had been bellowing through the room, now there was only a faint echo. The second in command of Fort Haste was breathing heavily. Her expression of surprise quickly turned vicious.

'What the HELL is this…this THING Orion!' Fenn demanded. She was red in the face from her prior attempt to slay the machine. I was still a little unsure at what was going on, but was quickly met with the other face of the argument as the machine buzzed to life again.

'OrIOn! GeT THiS GirL oFF Of ME. I THougHt YoU SAiD…'

'Ah...I sorta forgot about that.' I mouthed but Fenn had already dropped the machine in fright.

My lighting-fast reactions, much like that of an Umbreon, saved the machine from its potential impact onto the floorboards. Diving down, I caught the rounded box of metal and plastic with one hand. The cable out of the back of the machine swung round and hit me painfully in the face.

'Sorry Sparky…uh…You did tell her what you were right?' I asked the machine, setting it down on the table. 'Didn't Kim tell you about Sparky?' I asked Fenn after, watching as the girl collapsed into a chair.

'WeLL ShE WaNTEd to StICK JuST AnY OLD JunK In mE LiKe I…'

The CD player jumped into action before the teenager had time to speak. Giving the machine a hard look, I turned to the still somewhat stunned girl. Fenn's eyes alternated between glaring at the CD player, and accusing me of some made-up crime. She crossed her arms fiercely, lifting up her chin.

'No Orion. Kim did not TELL ME ANYTHING. I'm guessing she told you right?'

I stepped back instinctively. Even the CD player made some weird electric noise that might have been a growl. Fenn regarded the box with some venom.

'It's a Rotom. He's called Sparky and he lives in this thing. Uh, it's a music player right?' I asked, suddenly unsure about whether it was the correct machine I'd given the girl. The situation I had just stumbled upon made me question whether the device was some kind of audio weapon. 'That's all Kim told me.'

'So you both gave me a haunted machine? That thing nearly killed me! It better not try to POSSESS me or something!'

'YoU WaNTeD Me TO PLay wHaTeVeR CrAP thaT…'

'Sparky likes classical music.' I interrupted, not sure quite what that really meant. Kim had said something similar and I quoted the tomboy from what I could remember. 'And he can be a bit mouthy.'

'Mouthy?' Fenn raised an eyebrow, 'Did **SHE** tell you that? She found this...this THING?'

I nodded. The teenager proceeded to take a gulp out of her coffee mug before finding the liquid had gone cold. She immediately proceeded to spit the mix back into the mug with a grimace. Rubbing at her mouth with the sleeve of her woolen beige jumper, she glared at me again.

'So this was you idea for sorting out the music problem. Mike's sorted out the electricity now! We don't need a haunted boombox!'

'For two cables running through the FoodHall.' I pointed out, 'Matt's using the only socket we have in the house. Anyway… _You_ told me you wanted to listen to music. Kim mentioned that she had to get something and that turned out to be Sparky. Kim mentioned a while back that he was missing his old home and…'

'LoTs Of great oLD AnALoGUE kIt.' The Rotom confirmed, finishing the line with an 8-bit jingle. The tiny screen on the player flashed bright pixels outlining a smiling face.

'So I thought that you might appreciate giving Sparky a home.' I finished, waving my hand awkwardly towards the machine that the Rotom was inhabiting.

'AnD REal mUsiC'

Fenn deadpanned me, sniffing a little at her runny nose. Brushing her blonde hair out of her face, I waited patiently for the words which would let me know whether or not I'd done the right thing. In fact, I had to wait for a long while and even then Fenn continued to stare at me in silence.

Shuddering, I tried to break the ice by speaking to the Rotom.

'How do you even speak?' I queried, lifting the dangling cable and coiling it on the table, 'I thought...well…'

A picture of a laughing face popped up on the screen. The blue and red colour scheme seemed to alternate somehow, becoming a bright orange, as if the painted plastic had fused to become part of the Pokémon. Fenn used the calm moment to shuffle her work back into order. The overtly synthesized voice, which struggled to convey much emotion, buzzed through the air.

'RAdio WaVeS! YOu CAN MakE anY SoUNd wiTh iT. PeRkS oF BEinG a MuLtI-PuRpoSe CD PlaYER. NoT thE BeSt aT iT ThOuGh! A BiT…SPARKY iF yOU WiLL! '

I turned to Fenn, who at that moment was trying to ignore the two of us and put away her work into a folder.

'See.' I tried to grab her attention. 'Sparky can play whatever you want.'

Only then did the young woman sigh and turned to me stoically.

'I like the thought Orion. But you do realise you need actually music to play on. CDs? You've given me a haunted fossil of a machine. What did you expect me to think?'

'You don't have to plug it in.' I pointed out.

'Yeah.' Fenn answered dryly, 'Nothing weird about that. Where did Kim even find this?'

'It still plays CDs. Isn't that the point?' I avoided her question, trying to get the satisfaction I was hoping for upon gifting the Rotom to Fenn.

'You need the CDs to play Orion! All I could find was a best hits album of Elvis! Why did that survive the apocalypse of all things? Even you're precious cassettes must have better music on then that?''

My ears drooped. I didn't really understand how the machine worked and what it did. I hadn't really had the exposure to such technology beyond simple radio. That made sense. Still, I avoided Fenn's obvious attempt at trying to get her hands on my own artifacts.

'Where can I get some better music?' I asked.

Fenn slapped a hand over her face and groaned. Even Sparky gave over something which sounded like a whine. I decided to rephrase my question.

'What do they look like? How do I know what's good?'

'Round discs. Silver. So big…' She motioned with her hands in an overly patronising way. 'Seriously? You find them in square flat cases. Has some art of the front and the name of the band. Didn't you grow up with this stuff?'

At that point I was deep in thought. 'I think I saw so…'

'IS hE AlWayS ThIs BaD?' Sparky interrupted. The digital display shone a small face with a considering expression. Fenn went as far to chuckle at the small voice. It was almost like she'd forgotten that the machine was actually a Rotom.

'You wait. He thought you had to hire pilots to drive cars…and that microwaves cooked things by speeding up time. Orion hasn't had…'

She trailed off, looking me intently. I felt like I was a specimen being examined. Oh wait, I was.

'I'll see what I can find.' I mumbled, using it as an excuse to quickly exit the room. Before I did, I took a moment to fish around in my coat pockets. Remarkably poorly sewn pockets in the back of the parka to find the small cassette. Pulling it out gently, I studied the faded coverslip sleeving the plastic tape. The scrap of ruled paper read 'Everyday Chemistry.'

'Here.' I placed the box down on the table carefully, 'See what you think.'

Fenn's blue eyes flicked between me and the cassette. She even went as far to flash a short smile. It didn't take a genius to know what she was thinking. Most likely, it was yet another question she hadn't had a chance to ask this morning. Scratching at my hair, I tried to settle the hurt in my stomach. I didn't like being mocked, but the fact that Fenn was poking fun made it worse.

'Otherwise. I'll see what I can find.' I mumbled, using it as an excuse to quickly exit the room.

'Thanks.' Fenn called after me, followed the the mechanical voice of Sparky.

'GoOD luCk.'

I sighed, it was hard to tell whether or not the Pokémon was being sarcastic. There was some severe limitations to the emotion portrayed through his electronic voice. I could only wonder is the small cd player screen was depicting a pixelated laughing expression.

'Yeah good luck to you too Sparky.' I whispered under my breath.

It would be lying if I said I went looking for music. I tried to sleep, but was too exhausted to even contemplate sleeping. There was a nervous energy bubbling away inside - and I couldn't face being hauled up in my room. I'd studied the four walls extensively over the past few days. Even the air smelt like my own dank scent. Perhaps I was going stir crazy.

That night was long, cold, and cloudless.

It was a blessing when the next morning dawned brightly, frost hugging the ground like a dense carpet. Having bagged a handful of hours asleep, it was difficult to keep my eyes open. The sun rose with the sound of Pikipeks to greet me as I closed the farmhouse door behind me. With an extra pair of socks to warm my boots, a cold shiver forced me to roll down the sleeves of my raincoat. Although the leaves had barely left the trees, it appeared that winter was arriving early.

I was the only one who'd struggled to sleep that night. Mike was up early and pacing the palisade during his normal morning routine. Greeting the teenager tiredly, he took a moment to button up his coat. I guessed he had a couple of vests, a shirt, and maybe a fleece under the wax jacket. This had the superimposed effect of making the skinny boy look twice the size he normally did.

'You're up early.' Mike commented gruffly and I grinned,

'I could say the same thing about you.'

Our breath steamed. The palisade was frosted over with a coating of silvery ice that shone in the shallow morning sunlight. A weak mist clung to the frigid ground, obscuring the waymarkers in the distance. Visibility was down to a mere forty yards. Across the fields, trees stuck out of the mist like branched sails of tall-ships.

'Winter's coming.' Mike spoke solemnly, before bursting out into a grin. I didn't get the reference so feigned a smile. Having a rather tired Fenn explain the Vetra movie plots the night before, I had quickly realised that I had missed out on a significant part of human culture. Mike continued in his attempt to make conversation.

'Are you going to explain how all of a sudden the old woodshed got decluttered overnight? I could hear this banging around in the night. I'm surprised I didn't get a knock on the door with you asking to install running water in the place.'

He ran a hand through his auburn hair which was now well over ear length.

'It needed doing and I felt bad not being around to help this past week.' I explained. Mike just shrugged, although it was difficult under his numerous layers.

'It's not your fault. Anyways, I thought Fenn was trying to stop you being nocturnal.'

I itched at my tail.

'You can't be nocturnal if you don't sleep. I had a rough night.'

'At least you used the time productively.'

That made me laugh and I turned my eyes outwards again. Some Spearows and Starly hung around in the chill, fluffed up into little balls as they hopped across the frozen ground. However, the Lee slopes were the only thing that would provide a warm welcome to any attackers. The stakes and trip-lines shone in the frost, lined with ice and draped with spiderwebs.

Mike shifted from one foot to the other.

'So the Wildlings? Big day today. Do you think we're ready?'

'I hope so.' I muttered softly before clearing my throat, 'It's safer if we band together. Who knows what the winter will bring.'

'I guess.' Mike stuck his chin out for a moment before sighing again. 'I better get back. I promised Haley I'd stick some more insulation in the workshop today. I've been scavenging it from the stock round the back of the poultry house. That alright?'

'Fine.' I waved off his casual thievery, 'How's it going on with you two? Insley said you're a thing now?'

Mike huffed, 'Insley says a lot of things. Though...yeah.'

It was clear he didn't want to talk about it - especially if the flush of blood to his cheeks was anything to go by. The teenager took this as his cue to leave, wishing me luck as he did so. I watched him return to his makeshift flat, an outbuilding behind the back of the old farmhouse. It might have been a garage back in the day, or an old workshop. Now (much like the rest of Fort Haste) the shed had been re-purposed for living in.

A stiff breeze trickled through the air. My ears twitched at the disturbance as I tried to get my sleep addled mind into gear. For a long while I simply stared across the hauntingly beautiful morning. There was a calm to this new world and I hoped beyond hope that things would only get better. Fort Haste was supposed to be a safe haven. Whatever the God's wanted to throw at us - this would be our last stand.

That train of thought was broken when I heard my name being called. Turning around, I spotted Fenn walking over holding hands with Megan. The younger girl was wrapped up in a down jacket with a bright red bobble hat. Waving, I slid down off the palisade embankment and wandered over.

'Morning!'

Megan was a little shy, staring at me with large eyes as I greeted Fenn warmly. Both of them had frost-touched red noses and rosy cheeky. The young girl had bright teal eyes which seemed to dart between myself and the sentries on duty behind.

'How's it going?' I asked, burying my hands in my pockets.

'Some of us had a good night's sleep.' Fenn shrugged, pointedly looking to the side, 'We're dressed as warmly as we can. Didn't think it was going to be this cold.'

I shrugged before turning to Megan.

'So? Are you happy to help out?'

She nodded once, though the uncertainty in her gaze told a different story. Fenn, stood behind her, twitched her eyebrows and indicated that I needed to say something.

'Uh…so…' I fumbled with my words whilst trying to ignore Fenn giving me sharp look, 'It won't be much. It's just settling in the Wildlings. Would you be able to talk to them? Let them know where everything is and...yeah?'

Megan nodded again, 'So just talking to them?'

'Can you do that?' I tested lightly, breaking out into a grin upon seeing a smile spread across her face. Fenn just groaned, letting go of Megan's hand.

'I'll leave you with Orion then Megan. I've talked to Bass and you won't be missing anything important today. You've got yourself a free skive pass from me.'

That brought a small giggle from the girl and she waved goodbye and Fenn headed over towards the main yard. Turning to me, Megan was still a little hesitant as she waited awkwardly for directions. She took a moment to pull on a pair of knitted gloves.

'We might be waiting a while.' I admitted, hoping the girl wouldn't get too cold. 'They don't really have watches or anything.'

There was a long moment of awkward silence.

Out of the two of us, Megan was the one with enough confidence to break the ice.

'You look tired.' She stared at me intensely with her shining blue eyes.

'I struggled to sleep sometimes.'

'Is it because you're a Pokémon?' She asked sweetly, though in her young voice it could have been an accusation.

'Well. I'm not quite a Pokémon.' I feigned an insulted tone while subconsciously grabbing my tail.

'I...I thought that's what happens right? The...Virus?'

I quickly grasped where this conversation was going.

'Well. I don't really know to be honest. Maybe we'll find out…' I could see that wasn't going to go down well so did my best attempt at brightening the conversation. 'Would you believe me if I said that I was bitten by a Pokémon...and now I can change into an Umbreon?' To be fair, if change into a Umbreon meant acting like one, I wasn't far off the mark.

'So that's where you disappeared to! I knew it!' Megan exclaimed, turning to me with a laugh. 'Some of the older boys were spreading rumours that you'd gone wild...but I guess they just meant you'd turned into a Pokémon.'

I nodded along, more pleased with Megan's version of the story than the weak lie Fenn had provided me.

'Wait.' Megan furrowed her eyebrows. 'Doesn't that make you some kind of superhero?'

I considered that as we walked back on top of the palisade.

'I guess Pokémon powers could be...be like a superpower?' I wasn't convinced, 'But I think you're right. It's kinda like being a superhero. As long as you use those powers for good.'

'Absolutely.' Megan's serious tone was charming, 'It would be evil not to.'

'And what about you? You reckon you can be a superhero?'

There was a long moment of silence and I cursed my stupidity. Not wanting to look down at the girl, I watched a sentry switch and hoped I hadn't upset the girl. When at last I'd grown the courage to check on her, she was deep in thought. Megan chewed on her lip as she weighed the question.

'It's a lot of responsibility.' She said at last, turning to me. 'I...I'm not sure.'

'It's scary.' I spoke softly. At first I wasn't sure Megan had heard me.

Reaching out, she gripped my hand gently.

'It's ok. We're all here for each other right? It can't be that bad being an Umbreon? My uncle used to have one. I know you're nocturnal and all but...but I guess that's cool too. And you look badass too.'

'Thanks Megan.' I smiled down at her and she giggled.

'Who looks after you when you're an Umbreon?'

'Fenn looked after me. She's nice like that.'

Now that she had it in her mind I could mysteriously turn into an Umbreon, Megan was loaded with questions. At first I didn't want to spoil her imagination by telling her the truth. However, the more I thought about it, the more sense it made. Maybe I had been thinking about it the wrong way after all.

'Do you eat Pokémon food?'

I laughed, 'What! Why, have you tried it?'

Megan pulled a face, wrinkling her nose in disgust. 'Once, when I was five or something. I remember being sick. Maybe I'll start to like it now.'

'Well...It's something to look forward to.' I replied dryly, but the sarcasm went over the girl's head.

Megan went onto to tell what I assumed to be a highly embellished story of the incident. It was a way to pass the time as we waited for the eventual arrival of the Wildlings. The ground fog meant that they could only be a few hundred metres distance, or a couple of miles. Until the sun burnt through the mist there was no way of telling.

Half an hour later and Mike joined us on the embankment. The mechanic wasn't always the best around the younger kids, but greeted Megan warmly.

The young morph didn't break her chatter, having come out of her shell. Fenn had explained that Megan was rather shy. Then again, being able to talk about herself and show off some of her many talents proved too much for her. Maybe it was the promise at meeting lots of Pokémon, or perhaps talking to somebody who went through what the young girl was now facing.

Megan studied Mike in her rather adorable yet serious manner.

'Do you look after him when he's an Umbreon too mister?'

Mike froze, shooting a glance my way as if asking what to say. All I could do was shrug, faking ignorance.

'I think Orion growled at me the last time I tried to help.' The smug grin was directed at me.

'Oh.' Megan tutted loudly, shaking a finger at me, 'Just like a Pokémon! I knew it.'

The sheer ridiculousness of the situation brought out a warm chuckle from the mechanic. Mike relaxed relaxed visibly and I felt genuinely smiled. Without having to try, Megan was a rather comic without meaning to. Mike turned to me with a whisper.

'I think they hid Megan away so as to protect you. Give it a few days and she'll have both you and Fort Haste wrapped around her finger.'

Fifteen minutes later, and after a rather heated debate between Mike and Megan about the best Pokémon, the Wildlings arrived. Some keen-eyed sentry noticed before we did and a whistle call warbled the arrival of our guests. I let out a sigh of relief upon seeing Roan's pointed antlers silhouetted against the fog. It was a majestic sight, seeing the buck leading a small herd of Pokémon emerging from the mist.

Once again, Fort Haste was receiving refugees. Both Human and Pokémon alike shared the same fate, the same fears, and now the same shared fate.

'Here they are.' Mike pointed out the obvious, scratching at his auburn hair.

Megan grabbed a hold of my hand unexpectedly and I clasped her small glove tightly.

'Let's go and greet them shall we?'

The girl nodded and the three of us slowly worked our way to the main gate.

* * *

XXX

* * *

 _ **[4:16]**_ _Andrew Gold - Lonely Boy (1976)_

 _It'll teach him how to fight_

 _To be nobody's fool_

 _Oh, oh what a lonely boy_

* * *

 _Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any events, location, and/or persons, living or dead, is coincidental. The views expressed by the characters and/or the narratives do not necessarily reflect the author's views. This fiction is rated T and may be unsuitable for young audiences. 'Fort Haste' is a fictional concept that is owned and regulated by ZenColour._


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